As a result of global climate change, ecosystems are facing increasingly long and intense heat events. While plant species may be able to tolerate, adapt, or shift their ranges in response to climate change, plants in alpine ecosystems are considered especially sensitive to the effects of climate change due to geographic constraints on uphill range expansions. We conducted a novel, in-situ, active warming experiment on alpine plants growing near the summit of Mt Hotham, south-eastern Australia. Contrary to our predictions, we found no relationship between overall change in cover, survival, diversity, or reproductive effort with the intensity or duration of heat events. Additionally, there was no interaction between species’ origin (either native or introduced) or growth form (i.e., forb, shrub or graminoid), and change in cover in relation to the heat event intensity and duration. Thus, while climate change still poses substantial threats to alpine ecosystems, it is not clear how the intensity or duration of extreme heat events might impact alpine communities, or favour particular plant forms. Improving our understanding of which aspects of climate change pose the largest threats to alpine ecosystems remains an important goal that can help us to understand how sensitive plant communities may be affected into the future.

Private land conservation has grown significantly in popularity and extent in recent decades, contributing to Australia’s National Reserve System and national and international goals to achieve ’30x30’. For both economic and environmental reasons, such organisations disproportionately purchase and manage arid and semi-arid land, often former pastoral properties, where ecosystem recovery may be slow due to low rainfall. However, robust evidence for the impact of this transition from pastoral to conservation land management for bird communities is often poorly documented. We compared bird communities across three major habitat types on and off two large conservation reserves and three adjacent pastoral properties in the South Australian arid rangelands. Surveys were conducted at 35 sites on conservation reserves and 28 sites on neighbouring pastoral properties using Birdlife’s 20min, 2ha area-search method. On average, conservation reserves had higher bird species richness and distinctly different communities relative to pastoral properties. Crested bellbirds and Australian pratincoles were key drivers of these community differences, with higher abundance of these species on conservation and pastoral properties respectively. We demonstrate that conservation reserves can achieve meaningful environmental improvements relative to pastoral properties. However, these differences are strongly habitat and context dependent and likely vary in both space and time.

The red-tailed phascogale (Phascogale calura), a small semi-arboreal Australian dasyurid marsupial, has been extirpated from 99% of its pre-European distribution. Nine reintroductions have been attempted since 2005 across five States and Territories: six into feral predator-free fenced areas (safe havens), and three into unfenced areas where cat and/or fox control occurs. We summarised the methods and results of these reintroduction attempts to inform future management. Of the nine reintroduction attempts, three resulted in successful establishment (extant >5 years; 2 safe havens and 1 unfenced), three did not lead to population establishment (2 safe havens, 1 unfenced), two safe haven populations remain extant two-three years after initial reintroduction, and one unfenced reintroduction is still underway. All three successful reintroductions used wild-sourced adult animals, sometimes in combination with captive-bred animals, and were within 200 km of extant populations. However, all releases to date that did not result in established populations primarily released captive-bred animals. Key challenges encountered during red-tailed phascogale reintroductions included predation by introduced and native predators, hyperdispersal, toxoplasmosis, and severe weight loss post-release. All but one reintroduction (safe haven, wild-sourced founders) reported low founder recapture rates and/or high mortality of radio-collared individuals, suggesting low initial survival. This species may be more challenging to reintroduce and monitor than other marsupials due to its small size, making individuals more vulnerable to predation, more susceptible to starvation after release, and more likely to hyperdisperse through safe haven fences. Captive breeding may reduce post-release survival through inappropriate anti-predator behaviours, unfamiliarity with food sources at release sites and underdeveloped hunting behaviour, and possibly increased susceptibility to toxoplasmosis. We recommend using wild animals as source populations for future translocations where possible or, if releasing captive-bred animals, employing rigorous toxoplasmosis assessment and hygiene alongside a staged soft-release strategy involving gradually weaning animals off supplementary food in situ.

A rapid transition to renewable energy is essential to address climate change, but its speed and scale pose emerging risks to species and ecosystems. While the biodiversity impacts of wind and solar facilities are well studied in regions such as North America and Europe—where mitigation solutions have emerged—many other areas lack local evidence to guide development. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a global systematic review of the potential biodiversity impacts and mitigation strategies for wind and solar farms. We also carried out a spatial analysis of ecosystems affected by industrial wind and solar development in Australia, where only four field studies of wind farms have been published to date. Globally, most studies came from temperate North America and Europe, with a strong focus on bird and bat mortality around wind turbines. Fewer studies addressed solar farms, but those available highlighted opportunities to restore native plants, invertebrates, and other fauna beneath and around panels. Across both energy types, appropriate siting was the most frequently recommended strategy to reduce biodiversity impacts. Effective siting requires detailed knowledge of local biodiversity, however—both at broad planning scales and at the scale of individual bird and bat movements. Curtailment (automated turbine shutdowns) was also often effective in reducing wildlife fatalities, though it requires careful implementation to balance trade-offs with energy production. Biodiversity impacts and mitigation outcomes were often species- and ecosystem-specific. We recommend a range of field-based studies needed to inform future renewable energy development in overlooked regions. The transition to renewable energy can be biodiversity friendly, but we need clear guidance from science and policy to make it so.

The importance of ecological monitoring is paramount given current and ongoing high rates of extinction. This is particularly the case for threatened, rare and endemic species. Such species are at greater risk of rapid and unrecognised decline due to increased susceptibility to stochastic events such as disease, fire and flood. Such stochastic events also interact with long-term drivers of species decline like climate change and habitat degradation, further increasing the risk of decline.

The Chestnut-breasted Whiteface (Aphelocephala pectoralis) is one of South Australia’s only endemic bird species. This small (<10cm), ground-dwelling passerine, lives on elevated stony plains in the arid central regions of South Australia. Scattered perennial shrubs such as Maireana and Atriplex spp. provide essential cover, food, and nesting locations. The species was last surveyed comprehensively across its range in 1990, and has since anecdotally undergone population decline.

In winter/spring of 2024 we surveyed 44 sites across the species range, 33 of which were surveyed in 1990, and an additional 11 sites where Chestnut-breasted Whiteface had been recorded in the past 30 years. Using N-mixture models, we obtained the first robust population abundance estimate and demonstrate that it is highly likely that Chestnut-breasted Whiteface have declined, becoming undetectable in the Eastern and Northern sections of its historic range. Our study demonstrates the importance of ecological monitoring and especially highlights it’s critical importance to the conservation of threatened, rare and endemic species.

Rapid urbanisation is contributing to unprecedented biodiversity decline worldwide. Despite biodiversity loss being more pronounced in cities, traditional conservation efforts such as establishing large, protected areas and restoring native vegetation are largely undertaken far from urban landscapes. More proactive approaches, such as rewilding, have garnered momentum as a conservation process but remain underused in cities. Here, focusing on active faunal reintroductions, we explore urban rewilding as a process to restore ecological functions and enhance ecosystem resilience. Through a systematic literature review, we assessed the varied aims, challenges, and definitions of success in rewilding efforts in urban contexts. Moreover, we define the unique opportunities and benefits urban rewilding presents for reconnecting people with nature, fostering community engagement, and enhancing cultural connections. Finally, we identify future research areas, including the need for long-term studies on ecological impacts, developing species selection frameworks, and exploring sociocultural dimensions of urban rewilding.

Killer whales (Orcinus orca) are cosmopolitan apex predators occupying diverse marine environments, yet their population ecology remains poorly understood in many regions. This includes Australia, where year-round sightings occur across all coastal states and territories and at least three geographically and two genetically distinct populations have been described. This study addressed critical knowledge gaps by integrating sighting and photo-identification data into species distribution modelling, morphological assessment, and capture-mark-recapture analysis to characterise the population ecology of killer whales in Australian waters. Presence-only MaxEnt models revealed highly suitable habitats in both known and unknown locations. Environmental predictors highlighted contrasting habitat preferences between tropical and temperate waters, supporting the existence of two ecologically distinct forms. Morphological assessment through elliptical Fourier analysis revealed significant phenotypic variation among individuals from different regions. Differences in dorsal fin and eye patch shape provide further evidence of both a tropical and temperate form, with the latter resembling Antarctic ecotypes. Photo-identification data from Western Australia revealed contrasting demographic patterns between the two main aggregations. A small, stable population was identified at the northwest Ningaloo Reef (N = 47), while the southwest Bremer Sub-basin supported a larger, more transient assemblage of animals (maximum N = 349). These differences likely reflect underlying ecological, genetic, and behavioural variation as well as survey effort. This research provides the most comprehensive ecological assessment of killer whales in Australian waters to date, offering valuable baseline data to inform future studies and conservation planning. The findings align with what is known genetically and underscore the need to recognise and manage distinct killer whale forms in Australia. This work highlights the importance of long-term monitoring of this data deficient species in the face of environmental change and increasing anthropogenic pressures.

Island ecosystems support disproportionately high levels of endemism but are exceptionally vulnerable to extinction. The Norfolk Island Group is a region of high conservation significance, supporting a unique assemblage of endemic and threatened species. This study investigates the conservation ecology of two threatened reptiles (Christinus guentheri and Oligosoma lichenigerum) endemic to this region, with a focus on their distribution, habitat preferences, and population recovery on Phillip Island. Despite past ecological collapse due to introduced herbivores, their removal has since provided an opportunity to assess the outcomes of four decades of passive regeneration, while informing future active restoration efforts.

Standardised visual encounter surveys were conducted across a stratified set of habitats representing the various vegetation types across Phillip Island. To assess the factors influencing reptile abundance, key habitat characteristics were quantified within plots. Reptile density estimates were integrated with habitat extent maps derived from satellite imagery across multiple time points, enabling island-scale assessment of population trends in relation to habitat recovery trajectories.

Results indicate that both reptile species exhibit strong habitat associations with white oak (Lagunaria patersonia) woodland, where structural complexity and ground cover are greatest. Although white oak habitat is preferred, grasslands, Norfolk Island pine (Araucaria heterophylla) stands, and invasive olive (Olea europaea) thickets support higher reptile densities compared to degraded, bare earth areas. Both species have recovered to form large, stable populations, suggesting that passive restoration, following introduced herbivore removal, can facilitate substantial population rebound in certain island contexts.

This study provides the first systematic assessment of these species in over two decades and supports the conservation value of passive recovery in island ecosystems following targeted threat removal. These findings inform future restoration planning, monitoring protocols, and prioritisation of evidence-based conservation for threatened species recovery and management.

Freshwater turtles experience high levels of nest predation, with both native and non-native species recorded as nest predators in Australia. Turtle populations have evolved to withstand occasional high nest losses, but with the additive pressures of habitat loss and adult mortality events (e.g. vehicles, disease), persistent annual nest predation has led to population declines. Invasive red foxes are responsible for upwards of 95% of nest losses in some locations and current management options are limited. How predators use cues from nests to locate turtle eggs can explain the vulnerability of nests and underpins the development of new management options, for example olfactory misinformation approaches. In addition to direct cues left behind by ovipositing turtles (e.g. adult turtle body odours, fluids, and the eggs themselves), the physical turning over of soil during nesting may create indirect cues. While most freshwater turtle nests are visually cryptic, volatile organic compounds are released from soils when disturbed and have been suggested to be a foraging cue for foxes. I tested whether foxes are attracted to the physical cues associated with turtle nests by recording predator responses to a range of treatments, including simulated turtle nests (disturbed soil) and artificially applied geosmin (a volatile compound released when soil is disturbed). Fox behaviours were scored from trail camera videos collected over 3 months in the Southern Highlands of NSW, Australia. My study is the first to test the relevance of soil-derived cues in this system, and my results will have implications for addressing turtle nest vulnerability in a range of landscapes.