Together with A/Prof. Alistair Evans and Dr. Justin Adams we have been recently successful with the Faculty of Science and Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNHS) Interdisciplinary Research Seed Funding grants.
The last three million years have been characterised by strong climatic instability that drove many species to extinction. However, how climate change over this timescale has affected the growth and development of mammals cannot currently be assessed. In this project we will use a highly innovative approach, based on tooth biogeochemistry, that allows us to accurately measure dietary, physiological and behavioural responses to seasonal fluctuations in food availability. Together with Dr. Renaud Joannes-Boyau from Southern Cross University, and Dr. Ottmar Kullmer from the Senckenberg Research Institute, we will focus on the early life of marsupial and placental mammals, providing essential data for predicting how the present climate change will affect faunal communities in vulnerable ecosystems
