In the coming century, climate change is expected to significantly alter the terrestrial ecosystems of Antarctica. While the potential for widespread ecological responses across taxa with changing climatic conditions has long been acknowledged, a scarcity of biological records and limited long-term observations have hindered our ability to make predictions about broadscale patterns of future change for Antarctica’s terrestrial life. Here, drawing on a new continent-wide database of biological occurrences and layers of current and future environmental conditions, we use ensemble models to predict the effects of climate change on 28 functional groups from terrestrial Antarctica. We model the future habitat suitability of these groups across climate storylines and evaluate how the dispersal limitations typical of many Antarctic taxa might constrain their ability to remain in suitable areas. We show contrasting responses among functional groups and highlight the impact of diverse sources of model uncertainty. Through this work, we address critical questions for Antarctic science and conservation: Will warming climates create more land suitable for life? Which taxa are likely to benefit—or decline—as conditions change? And how might these shifts influence the future of conservation planning and environmental management on the continent?

The productive, dynamic, cultural rich and diverse Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth (CLLMM) region faces an uncertain future. At the end of the Murray-Darling Basin, the region is hugely vulnerable to the impacts of climate changes; it is anticipated to experience reducing river flows and, being the only estuary in the Murray-Darling Basin, increasing sea levels along with more frequent and intense disturbances. The changes that are coming are real and they will challenge the cultural, social, economic and ecological values that defines the region.

Transformative change in our thinking is needed to prepare and adapt to what the future holds, and this will be critical for maintain the prosperity and values of the region.

We must also shift our mindset on how knowledge is generated to inform and prepare for this future. A regionally-based research centre was established in Goolwa in 2023 to delivery research that aligns with the priorities of community and First Nations as well as the management needs of the region. The community-driven and innovative science of the Research Centre are providing the evidence base to address the critical needs of the region, supporting a well-informed community and empowering future generations to be part of the solution. This presentation will step through the challenges facing the region, how community and First Nations are at the forefront of knowledge generation and emphasise a call for collective solutions to foster a shared sustainable future.

Climate warming is increasing the exposure of wildlife to sublethal hot temperatures, leading to cryptic physiological costs that may subsequently threaten lifespan or reproductive success. This could ultimately drive populations into decline. Predicting such declines remains challenging however, due to difficulties in quantifying inherently cryptic effects in wildlife. Adding to this challenge is the among-individual variability in heat responses, arising from e.g., physiological maturity and life-history, behaviour, or environmental conditions. Therefore, determining the overall cost of high temperatures requires high-quality ecological and individual data, as well as an integrated biomarker of the sublethal effects of heat exposure. We achieve this by measuring telomere attrition, a well-established biomarker of lifespan, in a cooperatively breeding bird from the Australian tropical savanna, the purple-crowned fairy-wren (Malurus coronatus coronatus). We demonstrate that hotter conditions accelerate telomere attrition during two critical life stages: juveniles transitioning to nutritional independence and adults transitioning into a reproductive phase. Against expectations, neither rainfall nor social group size mitigated these effects. However, for adults, living in high-quality riparian habitat attenuated heat-related telomere attrition, suggesting habitat restoration or preservation may mitigate the impact of climate warming on this Endangered bird. We demonstrate that sublethal heat can have a pervasive effect throughout life, extending beyond sensitive early life stages. Unless compensated, the cumulative lifetime effect could result in delayed population decline. Given that telomere processes are conserved, thermal stress will likely impact telomere dynamics in other organisms, highlighting the general threat of climate warming and the importance of preserving suitable refugia.

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are increasing in coastal ecosystems and are having profound impacts on marine biodiversity, food web interactions, and ecosystem health. Less understood are the impacts that HABs can have on marine microbial and viral microbial community dynamics, which have the potential to cause cascading effects throughout the ecosystem. We opportunistically sampled the water column to provide an initial understanding of microbial and viral abundance and community composition during a severe HAB that occurred on the South Australian coastline in 2025. Water samples from six sites spanning 180 kms of coastline were collected monthly from March to July 2025 across three microhabitats (rocky reef, sandy bottom, and jetty structures). Microbial and viral abundances were quantified using flow cytometry, and microbial community composition was assessed via 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Our results indicate a significant increase in microbial abundances during peak bloom conditions, coinciding with significant drop in viral loads, suggesting that microbial communities are growing uncontrollably. The microbiolization will cause oxygen loss and an increase in the potentially pathogenic microbes adding to the stress of marine organisms. This work highlights the importance of integrating microbial and viral ecology into assessments of bloom impacts and provides a framework for understanding microbial succession and resilience in coastal systems facing increasing bloom pressures.