Aquatic Ecology and Restoration Research Group

Aquatic Ecology anr Restoration Research Group

Introduction

The Aquatic Ecology and Restoration Research Group has a focus on applying rigorous science to inform the management of a range of freshwater and estuarine ecosystems. Our interests range from innovative fundamental research into how habitat structure affects distribution patterns of freshwater species, applied research to monitor the impacts of human activities on the ecological condition and functioning of catchments, through to understanding the ecosystem services provided by wetland, river and estuarine ecosystems.

Much of our research is based in the regulated floodplain rivers and wetlands of the northern Murray-Darling Basin and Northern Tablelands and in the unregulated coastal rivers and estuaries of eastern Australia. The applied focus of our research is about finding solutions to real-world problems, and by working closely with community, industry, and government, we can ensure that our research is having a meaningful impact.

Our Research

Research projects in the Aquatic Ecology and Restoration Laboratory have a strong focus on investigating the aquatic ecology of wetland, lagoon, river and estuarine ecosystems – how populations and communities interact with their physical environment. We are particularly interested in understanding the fundamental biogeochemical processes such as nutrient and organic matter cycling, and ecosystem metabolism that support aquatic food webs.

Research Themes
  • Aquatic species ecology - microbes, algae, invertebrates and fish.
  • Management of environmental water/flows in the context of competing demands for water.
  • Development and implementation of monitoring programs to assess the ecological condition of aquatic ecosystems.
  • Design and ecological assessment of waterway restoration projects.
  • Aquatic food webs research – investigating food web structure and function to understand ecosystem energetics and responses to management.
Research Student Opportunities

The Lab is recruiting Honours and postgraduate students to undertake research projects in a number of areas that link with our current funded projects. These include:

  • Aquatic species ecology - microbes, algae, invertebrates, and fish.
  • Management of environmental water/flows in the context of competing demands for water.
  • Development and implementation of monitoring programs to assess the ecological condition of aquatic ecosystems.
  • Design and ecological assessment of waterway restoration projects.
  • Aquatic food webs research – investigating food web structure and function to understand ecosystem energetics and responses to management.

Gwydir Marshes at Gingham

Further Information

 AERRG in the Media

RAMSAR Documentary - Little Llangothlin Nature Reserve from Glen Innes Natural Resources Advisory Committee (GLENRAC) https://vimeo.com/525300379

Photo journal of a Flow-MER field assistant https://2rog.com.au/news/issue-36-photo-journal-of-a-flow-mer-field-assistant/

Issue 31 Flow-MER in the Gwydir: What Do We Do  https://2rog.com.au/news/3076/

Issue 27 Northern Murray-Darling Basin Environmental Flows Forum https://2rog.com.au/latestnews/page/3/

Issue 24 The Making of a Wetland Wonderland https://2rog.com.au/news/2868/

Issue 18 Wetland wildfire https://2rog.com.au/news/wetland-wildfire/

Issue 11 When wetlands boom https://2rog.com.au/news/when-wetlands-boom/

Aquatic Ecology and Restoration Research Group takes out award https://www.camdencourier.com.au/story/5043374/group-recognised-for-river-health-research/

River's health on the agenda https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/lismore/rivers-health-on-the-agenda/news-story/7606146079180981ba9e3b9de36b79c0

Accidental activist for our rivers https://www.une.edu.au/connect/news/2019/03/accidental-activist-for-our-rivers

The journey of a UNE postgraduate student juggling it all https://www.une.edu.au/connect/news/2023/02/the-journey-of-a-une-postgraduate-student-juggling-it-all

Protecting our precious wetlands https://www.miragenews.com/protecting-our-precious-wetlands-940281/

Wetlands, waterbirds and food webs with Lindsey Frost https://www.owltail.com/podcast/oKwp1-In-Situ-Science/best-episodes

UNE School of Environmental & Rural Science: 3 Minute Thesis Talk by David Mackay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMJFs1f_F7s

Our People

Staff

Dr Sarah Mika – Research Fellow
Email: smika2@une.edu.au

Dr Adrienne Burns – Research Fellow
Email: aburns@une.edu.au

Dr Ivor Growns – Research Fellow
Email igrowns@une.edu.au

Dr Iris Tsoi - Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Email: wtsoi@une.edu.au

Ben Vincent - Research Officer
Email:  bvincen3@myune.edu.au

Paul Lisle – Technician
Email: alisle2@une.edu.au

Max Richardson – Technician
Email: mricha38@une.edu.au

Prof Andrew Boulton – Adjunct
Email: aboulton@une.edu.au

Research Students

Bob Baker (PhD Candidate) – Potential for biofuels from natural algal communities in sewage treatment ponds: nutrients and zooplankton as regulatory processes.
Email: rbaker26@myune.edu.au

Solomon Birhanie (PhD Candidate) - Influence of dams on malaria transmission in Sub-Saharan Africa
Email: sbirhani@myune.edu.au

Swornima Shrestha (Ph. D Candidate)
Email: sshres21@myune.edu.au

Lindsey Frost (Masters Candidate)
Tracing energy flow in a floodplain wetland to understand ecosystem responses to environmental water
Email: lfrost2@myune.edu.au

Sam Lewis (Hons Candidate)
The benefits of habitat restoration in estuarine fish communities
Email: slewis30@myune.edu.au

Michael Smart
Anna Barker
Mellissa Hampton-Smith
Penny Leary

Recently Completed

Dr Rob Rolls (Ph.D.) - Ecological effects of flow regulation on fish assemblages in tributaries of the Hunter River catchment, New South Wales, Australia

Dr Sally Maxwell (Ph.D.) The effects of river regulation and response of invertebrates to a pulse flow release in the upper Hunter Catchment, NSW

Dr Morag Stewart (Ph.D.) Reach-scale biogeochemistry within agricultural streams: interactions with riparian
vegetation, channel geomorphology and hydrology.

Dr Ben Wolfenden (Ph.D.) Geochemical behaviour of metalliferous contaminants in the upper Macleay Gorges, Northern NSW

Dr Sarah Mika (Ph.D.) Restoring vertical connectivity in rivers: geomorphic, hydrologic and biogeochemical responses to log sills in the Williams and Hunter Rivers, NSW, Australia

Dr Karlie McDonald (PhD) – Integrated modelling of trophic shifts in unregulated coastal rivers: A Bayesian network approach.
Email: kmcdonal@myune.edu.au

Dr Lisa Thurtell  (PhD) - The response of aquatic communities to water quality, land use, flow variability and extraction in an unregulated Australian coastal river.
Email: lthurte@myune.edu.au

Andrew Smolders (MEnvSci) – Developing best-practice management in water supply catchments
Email: asmolder@myune.edu.au

Phoebe Haslett (Honours)  – Developing geochemical fingerprints for determining the source of fine sediment in degraded coastal rivers.
Email: phaslett@myune.edu.au

Nathan Eager (Honours)  – Does riparian restoration improve instream biodiversity in urban streams?
Email: neager@myune.edu.au

Join Us

We're always on the look out for interested students to come and join the lab. If the research on this site sounds interesting, then feel free to contact me and discuss some options. I will happily supervise students or host post docs that cover any area of aquatic and restoration ecology, as long as we feel that we can contribute to the project.

Living in Armidale

Armidale is a beautiful city, with distinct seasons. While it can be cold overnight in winter, the trade-off is glorious sunny days with little wind and clear skies. We are fortunate that within a couple of hours drive are many aquatic habitats from mountain streams, peat swamps, coastal rivers and estuaries. Armidale is also surrounded by many National Parks and reserves, so finding a close field site is easy! To learn more about Armidale, have a look here.

Scholarship opportunities

For those looking for scholarships to fund PhD projects, see here.

Available Resources

Aquatic Ecology Laboratory:

Equipped with a range of field equipment including 4WD, Kayaks, canoe, with the capability of fitting one of two electric outboard motors, water quality meters, fish finder and nets, micro- and macro-invertebrate sampling equipment, flow meter, light and radiation meters, and surveying gear. Laboratory equipment includes incubators, ovens, refrigerators, balances, microscopes (including research standard with fibre-optic cold-light source, fluorescence and digital imaging), autoclave, and specimen storage facilities including -20c and -80c freezers with uninterruptable power sources.

Environmental Chemical Analysis Laboratory:

This facility has equipment for the chemical and biological analyses of water samples including nutrients, algae and solids. Equipment to facilitate these analyses include UV/ UIS spectrophotometer, drying ovens, incubators, centrifuges, autoclaves, distillation units, RO and Milli Q water system, muffle furnace, balances, fume hood, laboratory glassware washer, laboratory water bath and dry block heater. Specifically, we have a Cole-Parmer EY-83057-01 4 nm Bandwidth Spectrophotometer and a SEAL AQ400 Discrete Analyzer with BD285/BD 505 Digestion system for analysis of alkalinity, ammonia, chloride, cyanides, nitrate/nitrite, ortho phosphate, total phosphorus, total kjeldahl nitrogen.

Recent Publications