Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/17708
Title: Ecological research in Australia: Identifying links 'versus' gaps between hotspots of ecological research and biodiversity
Contributor(s): Kumar, Lalit  (author)orcid ; Khormi, Hassan  (author); Leis, Katrina (author); Taylor, Subhashni  (author)orcid 
Publication Date: 2015
DOI: 10.1111/aec.12225
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/17708
Abstract: Increasing anthropogenic impacts on biodiversity has been a cause for concern in Australia in recent years. Areas that hold high levels of endemic species and also face exceptional threats of destruction have been described as biodiversity hotspots. Ecological research focused on biodiversity hotspots will provide a better understanding of the flora and fauna of these regions and thus inform conservation strategies. Consequently, it is important to understand where biodiversity hotspots are located and how well they have been researched in the past. However, the choice of ecological research sites may be influenced by a variety of factors such as proximity to research institutions. This study utilized a geographic information system to investigate the spatial distribution of ecological research field sites in Australia and its territorial waters, the hotspots of the field sites around research institutions and the proximity of ecological research field sites from the main campus of the research institutions. Furthermore, these hotspots of ecological research were linked to biodiversity hotspots to identify the regions that were commonly depicted in the ecological literature and to identify others that may need more attention. We demonstrated that hotspots of ecological research were concentrated around research institutions, with a large number of field sites being located between 0 km and 500 km from the nearest institution, especially along the eastern coast. This study highlighted areas that have been the focus of much ecological research as well as areas that need more attention from ecologists to add new knowledge to Australian ecological science.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: Austral Ecology, 40(5), p. 581-590
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Asia
Place of Publication: Australia
ISSN: 1442-9993
1442-9985
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: 050206 Environmental Monitoring
090903 Geospatial Information Systems
050209 Natural Resource Management
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 410599 Pollution and contamination not elsewhere classified
401302 Geospatial information systems and geospatial data modelling
410406 Natural resource management
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: 960604 Environmental Management Systems
960806 Forest and Woodlands Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity
960501 Ecosystem Assessment and Management at Regional or Larger Scales
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 189999 Other environmental management not elsewhere classified
180606 Terrestrial biodiversity
180403 Assessment and management of Antarctic and Southern Ocean ecosystems
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article
School of Environmental and Rural Science

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