Brad Bowden and I caught up on Ep 5 of the RTRFM podcast This Changes Everything. We discuss tree diversity in WA, the benefits they provide, and the myriad threats they face. We also cover what we can be doing to be good custodians of trees for future generations. 🌐🌏 rtrfm.com.au/podcasts/thi...

Today is world numbat day. The numbat is our state animal emblem in WA, yet it is threatened with extinction by predation from introduced cats and foxes. It is now restricted to only a few small unfenced areas in WA, after being once found across southern Australia.

"...we have to do everything in our power to make the world a better place for the children alive today, and for those that will follow. You have it in your power to make a difference. Don’t give up." - Jane Goodall on Famous Last Words for @netflix.com www.netflix.com/tudum/articl...

"The greatest danger to our future is apathy. ... What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make." - Vale Jane Goodall (1934-2025).

Only known from a single plant growing in the botanic gardens in Sri Lanka, the endemic Pini-Beraliya was declared Extinct in the Wild. But a post on social media about the tree has now led to the discovery of three wild populations and a recovery programme! 🌱🧪🙌🏻 news.mongabay.com/2025/08/soci...

The Building Private Land Conservation Symposium, held in Fremantle, was an outstanding opportunity to hear updates and share Bush Heritage Australia's latest on covenanting, stewardship and co-investment opportunities to secure the future of Western Australia's unique landscapes. 🌏 #scicomm

🚨Have your say on the new conceptual model and Data Package Guide for #DarwinCore The @tdwg.org Darwin Core Maintenance Group has opened a 90-day public review and comment period for the new conceptual model and Data Package Guide. 🗓️ 17 September – 16 December 2025 🔗 www.tdwg.org/news/20...

Australia's 2035 climate targets are difficult to achieve, and even if they are, we won't be fine. A sobering assessment from @alankohler.bsky.social via ABC News. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...

Addressing the connection between animal biodiversity declines and the carbon stored in our ecosystems can help to make smarter decisions about aligning responses to the biodiversity crisis and the climate crisis. 🌐🌏 via @mongabay.com news.mongabay.com/2025/09/anim...

It's not all about PFAS: metal(loid)s are associated with physiological and metabolic changes in motorbike frogs (Ranoidea moorei) from conservation significant wetlands in Perth WA. Great to see this paper out, a big effort led by @lettsgetsnakes.bsky.social. authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S... 🌐🌏

This week we saw solutions announced in Western Australia to improve responsible pet cat ownership. Hannah Beazley MLA announced (1) an amendment to the Cat Act that will allow for local governments to prevent pet cats from roaming, & (2) a broader review of the Cat Act. A🧵 #wildoz

Can Australia really be a responsible climate actor if it keeps developing major new gas projects as global emissions continue to rise? 🌐 www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...

There are so many aspects of the shot-hole borer #eradication campaign that are worth reflecting on to inform how to do better with future #biosecurity threats. We really need to rethink the entire framework that deploys ineffective biosecurity in #Australia. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...

A sold out screening of Wilding this week shared the benefits of helping nature recover with almost 500 people. These events energise me and give me hope that while we have an enormous challenge ahead of us, we have plenty of people wanting to make a difference to biodiversity conservation outcomes.

Abstracts call closes Nov 10, 2025 ⏰ We hope you’ll join us at SOTM 2026 !!! www.speciesonthemove.com #SOTM2026 #speciesonthemove

The achievable carbon uptake from planting trees is much lower than previous estimates, and even lower than many nations have committed to. New paper by Wang et al. in Science. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... 🧪🌏🌳🌲🌐

Important reading as you prepare for your semester

Join us for a special event screening of Wilding, presented by Bush Heritage Australia at Luna Cinemas. The film, based on Isabella Tree's best-selling book, will be followed by an exclusive panel discussion. Wed 3 Sep from 6pm | Tickets: www.lunapalace.com.au/events/wildi... 🌐🌏 #scicomm

Read our latest paper on the trends and statuses of #biologicalinvasions worldwide. Led by @hannoseebens.bsky.social , L Meyerson, P Pyšek and D Richardson and ~60 other coauthors, and based on Chap2 of the #IAS #IPBES Report, it has all the basic info you need! A MUST READ! doi.org/10.1111/brv....

I'm looking forward to reading this one, just out in @newphyt.bsky.social 👀 👇

Invasive species can radically alter community dynamics: In Kenya, an invasive ant replaced native ants that keep elephants from destroying acacia trees, whose cover allows lions to ambush zebra. Lions shifted their hunting strategy to stalk buffalo. #bioinvasions www.theguardian.com/environment/...

This surprisingly relaxing footage is from SIX MILES under the ocean – and it’s the deepest ecosystem yet discovered

Here's a #podcast to bring nature to your ears and hope to your hearts. Bush Heritage Australia's latest season of Big Sky Country has dropped! Hope-filled stories from the frontlines of the #climate and #biodiversity crisis are here to share: 🎧: www.bushheritage.org.au/news/podcasts 🌏 🌐 #SciComm

Come and work with us at Bush Heritage Australia, delivering conservation impact in some of Western Australia's most spectacular regions. If you’re passionate about conserving Australia's unique landscapes, we'd love to hear from you! Learn more and apply today 👉 bit.ly/4lwLVI7 #ConservationJobs

Species succession over nearly 3 decades on either side of a predator exclusion fence. A great example from the #AridRecovery team of the insight that long-term studies provide! 🌐 #bioinvasions www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07...

“It is time for Western Australia to enable and encourage local cat laws that enable permanent containment for pet cats” The broader implications of our survey of local governments across WA regarding responsible pet cat ownership. www.watoday.com.au/national/wes...

I enjoyed talking with Oliver Peterson on 6PR Perth about the urgent need for solutions so that local governments can introduce laws that prevent pet cats from roaming. Listen to the interview here: nine.social/Zro

We've taken the pulse on on responsible cat ownership across Western Australia. The @wafcwg.bsky.social undertook a survey of all 139 local governments on past attempts, current efforts, and future aspirations by local governments for managing pet cats. A🧵(1/5)

The most concerning part of a 'transition to management' for PSHB is that the full extent of national impacts are not clear for stakeholders, nor is what happens when the transition finishes in 18 months. Eradication is challenging but not impossible. www.australiangeographic.com.au/science-envi...

reminder: climate fatalism becomes starkly absurd when you put it in literal, immediate and physical terms. Oh no there's just no way we can ever stop handing billions in subsidies to this coal mining company. Damn, we're doomed. Guess we just keep on doin it

What I wish I knew: 33 thoughts for early career researchers Reflections I wish someone had shared with me early in my research career. predirections.substack.com/p/what-i-wis...

We're hiring. 2.5 year statistical ecology postdoc in Perth, Western Australia. Closing 6 July. 🌏 #bioinvasions #biosecurity Check it out: www.seek.com.au/job/85070198...

A powerful, persuasive, emotional & evidence-based rebuttal to Wallach & Lundgren’s claims, from Professor John Woinarski. My own view, it’s essential for science to challenge dogma, but if this is not done in a robust way, using weight of evidence, it is reckless & potentially harmful. #ICCB2025

It's #ShowYourStripes day today. These iconic #DataViz examples boldly reveal our #ClimateCrisis. We have to live with what has happened in the past but we can change our future trajectory. How will you be part of that change? @edhawkins.org via www.ShowYourStripes.info #SciComm

"...we must not fall into the trap of mistaking the outputs of writing (which are increasingly substitutable through technology) from the value of the cognitive process of writing..." www.forkingpaths.co/p/the-death-... #SciComm

I could not be more excited to begin working with Bush Heritage Australia today. We live in an era where the future of our natural world has never been so threatened. Yet as David Attenborough cautioned, “We know what we need to do. What happens next is up to us.” (1/2)

A monumental taxonomy unification effort has just been published - thanks to all those who've collaborated for years to make this happen! birdsoftheworld.org/bow/news/avi...

Friday was my last day at CSIRO. It's been a blast chasing that challenge of how to do biodiversity conservation more effectively in an era of rapid global environmental change. Thank you to all who have been part of this work and the impact it has delivered. I'm looking forward to what lies ahead!

A preprint of our paper on #CausalInference in #Ecology - Best practices for moving from correlation to causation in ecological research - led by Hannah Correia is now up as a preprint ecoevorxiv.org/repository/v... 🧪🌍 This came from a GREAT workshop last year, and gives a solid framework and howto

This #WorldEnvironmentDay, ask yourself, what would Sir David do? "It's surely our responsibility to do everything within our power to create a planet that provides a home not just for us, but for all life on Earth." - #DavidAttenborough

There are many dangers your cat may face when roaming. With 2 in 3 cat owners having lost a cat to a roaming related accident, many people are already making the choice to keep their cats contained. Congratulations RSPCA Victoria, what a great initiative! 👏 Find out more: www.rethinkroaming.com.au

In which I point out that our Prime Minister might just be stretching the truth a tad when he says that Woodside's North West Shelf extension is needed to firm the Western Australian grid. Did he tell you about how he grew up in social housing?

When I get angry I write to The Age. My letter in today’s (30/5/2025) edition. The private profit and tax generated by the expansion of NW shelf gas project will be swamped by the future costs. Our children will see it happen.

I'm looking forward to seeing the data roll in from our new rain sensors! Coming out of a collaboration with the #InnovateIOT team, these sensors are specifically built to deal with rugged conditions and to not be bothered by leaf litter and other detritus. #AppliedEcology #Innovation

Decoding the universe! We took our annual #Keen2STEAM event to the next level with 13 participating schools tackling a day of exciting #STEM challenges. We followed this year's National Science Week theme relating activities to the mathematics of communication and design in nature. #SciComm 🧪

Congratulations to the City of Vincent for organising an excellent native plant sale at Birdwood Square. 11,000 plants were sold over the morning! What a great initiative to help native biodiversity thrive in our suburbs and to help our community embrace the beauty of gardening with native plants.

"When you plan your work, be careful to give yourself time to think." - Advice given by British ecologist Charles Elton to his graduate students over 60 yrs ago (Crowcroft 1991).

"Thinking time —the time needed to concentrate without interruptions has always been central to scholarly work. It is essential to designing experiments, compiling data, assessing results, reviewing literature and, of course, writing. Yet, [it] is often undervalued." www.nature.com/articles/d41...

The cost of permanent containment for pet cats can be cheaper than a single vet bill to cover treating a roaming-related accident (car strike, animal attack). Suitable containment solutions can even be done in a temporary way for renters. Time to rethink the problem. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05...

WALGA & the @wafcwg.bsky.social will be hosting an online workshop on cat containment for WA Local Government Officers & Councillors. Three east coast councils who have permanent containment already will be sharing their experiences. 🕒: Thu 12 June 2025 🎟️: events.teams.microsoft.com/event/dd25fe...