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Damian Lettoof

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PhD Candidate, Curtin University

I am a herpetologist currently completing my PhD on the impacts of urbanisation on Western tiger snakes (Notechis scutatus occidentalis) in Perth, Western Australia. My project focuses on the health on tiger snakes as a wetland top predator, and how wetland snakes can be used as a bioindicator of wetland health. Currently, I'm examining bioaccumulation of contaminants, parasites, blood biochemistry and population genetics.

My earlier research areas include cane toad and native frog parasite transmission, cane toad movement ecology, and snake harvest and trade in South-East Asia. I have also been a freelance fauna consultant working all around Australia on a suite of vertebrate species for the last 11 years.

Experience

  • 2018–2020
    Academic demonstrator, Curtin University
  • 2009–2020
    Fauna ecologist, Lettoof consulting (freelance)
  • 2013–2018
    Field demonstrator, University of Technology, Sydney
  • 2012–2014
    Research assistant, University of Sydney (The Shine Lab)

Education

  • 2013 
    University of Sydney, Masters of Wildlife Health and Population Management
  • 2011 
    Western Sydney University, Bachelor of Animal Science

Grants and Contracts

  • 2020
    Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment
    Role:
    Funding Source:
  • 2019
    Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment
    Role:
    Funding Source:

Professional Memberships

  • Australian Society of Herpetologists
  • Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles