Kimberly L Maute

University of Wollongong | UOW · Department of Biological Sciences

The relationship between sublethal pesticide exposure and oxidative stress in an ecologically relevant field setting is relatively unknown for reptiles. Oxidative stress is a multi-faceted concept that dictates key survival and fitness parameters in any organism. Fipronil and fenitrothion are two pesticides widely used globally for agricultural pes...

Exposure of songbirds to organophosphorous pesticides has been shown to affect a range of behavioural characteristics including singing, displaying and flying that consequently can have significant impacts on the viability of free-living individuals and populations. In the current study, display flights of male Brown Songlarks (Cincloramphus crural...

The use of chemical pesticides to manage locust populations in natural ecosystems is likely to impact non-target arthropods and their predators. However, the relative effects of different locust control applications on Australian birds are unknown. Aerial applications of fipronil and fenitrothion are examples of two pesticides used in locust contro...

Context. Quantifying the space use and movement patterns of animals is important to understand other aspects of a species ecology, such as habitat use and social systems. However, basic data on space use and movement patterns, and how they are influenced by biotic or abiotic factors, are lacking for many species. Aims. We identified the space use a...

Assessment of non-target impacts of pesticides used widely in agriculture and pest management rarely considers reptiles. Despite their integral role in all ecosystems, particularly arid ecosystems, reptiles are not included in risk assessments. Two pesticides used in agricultural pest management are fipronil and fenitrothion. Here, we used a field-...

Abstract Emergency conservation interventions will be increasingly necessary to prevent extinctions or severe population bottlenecks as extreme events become more frequent. We detail the emergency extraction of the endangered Eastern Bristlebird (Dasyornis brachpterus) during the unprecedented 2019–2020 Australian Black Summer bushfires, an interve...

The ability to produce large numbers of pesticide-exposed insects (e.g. crickets) is important for feeding studies into the effects of pesticides on key predatory species. House crickets (Acheta domesticus L. 1758) were submersed in serial dilutions of the pesticides, fenitrothion and fipronil, used for the control of locusts in Australia, and then...

Defining environmental reservoirs hosting mobile genetic elements that shuttle critically important antibiotic resistance genes is key to understanding antimicrobial resistance (AMR) from a One Health perspective. Gulls frequent public amenities, parklands, and sewage and other waste disposal sites and carry drug-resistant Escherichia coli

Background Quantifying the space-use and movement patterns of animals is critical to understanding habitat use and social systems. Little is known of the finer details of lizard movement biology, due to the limitations of observational studies. Advancements in technology has greatly improved our ability to study animal space-use and movement, thoug...

Large rain events drive dramatic resource pulses and the complex pulse‐reserve dynamics of arid ecosystem changes between high‐rain years and drought. However, arid‐zone animal responses to short‐term changes in climate are unknown, particularly smaller rain events that briefly interrupt longer‐term drought. Using arthropods as model animals, we de...

Restoration practitioners commonly use plantings of young seedlings to restore endangered forest communities impacted by anthropogenic disturbance, such as weed invasion and deforestation. Forest recovery may be significantly hampered by browsing pressure from herbivores, and practitioners use a variety of plant guard techniques to reduce the negat...

Urban waterbirds are considered both serious pests and inspiring wildlife. Ibis and gulls are often vilified due to their dirty appearance and disruption of outdoor activities, while ducks are affectionately fed in parks. However, all waterbirds are potential reservoirs of zoonotic pathogens. In Sydney (Australia), we documented the relative preval...

Declines in population size can compromise the viability of populations by reducing the effective population size (Ne), which may result in loss of genetic diversity and inbreeding. Temporal population genetic data can be a powerful tool for testing the presence and severity of reductions in Ne. The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) is a flagship...

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Interspecific aggression by the noisy miner (Manorina melanocephala), a highly despotic species, is homogenizing woodland avifaunas across eastern Australia. Although a native species, the noisy miner's aggressive exclusion of small birds is a Key Threatening Process under national law. Large‐scale removal of noisy miners has been proposed as a man...

Birds’ wings reflect their life histories, suggesting evolutionary selection for wing shapes and moult strategies. Compared to sedentary species, long-distance migrants have narrower wings (for fast, efficient flight); they have fewer feather faults and avoid moulting flight feathers during migration (to optimise flight surface performance). It is...

Mosquitoes and mosquito-borne pathogens within urban regions may vary in response to short-term spatial and temporal changes in climate, as well as the distribution of water bodies, habitats and wildlife. Predicting where and when mosquito-borne pathogens are likely to occur is vital to safeguarding against outbreaks of human disease and developing...

While locust control is necessary to avoid the high cost of locust damage to agriculture, land managers are increasingly seeking to minimize the environmental impact of pesticide spray treatments used. The comparative impacts of different locust control treatments on non-target arid zone fauna are rarely studied in the field, leading to uncertainty...

Assessment of genetic diversity and connectivity between regions can inform conservation managers about risk of inbreeding, potential for adaptation and where population boundaries lie. The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) is a threatened species in northern Australia, occupying the savannah woodlands of the biogeographically complex monsoon tro...

Microsatellite methods. Detailed methods for microsatellite amplification and quality checks. (DOCX)

Pairwise diversity, differentiation and spatial autocorrelation results. Figures and tables include uncorrected p-values for differences between each population comparison, pairwise estimates of genetic differentiation and spatial autocorrelation. (DOCX)

Gouldian finches at Wyndham. Detailed description of methods and recapture rates of Gouldian finches at Wyndham between 2008 and 2013. (DOCX)

K-means clustering and discriminant analysis of principal components. Text and figures describe the detailed methods and model checks associated with the analysis of the microsatellite and SNP data in adegenet. (DOCX)

Termites are ubiquitous detritivores and are a key influence on soil function and nutrient cycles, particularly in arid and semi-arid ecosystems. Locust control presents a unique hazard to termites and the effective functioning of ecosystems as a consequence of the overlap between pesticide applications and termite populations in grassland and dese...

Litter and microbes are key drivers of nutrient cycles, particularly in arid ecosystems where decomposition rates are low. Locust control in arid regions represents a potentially important hazard to microbes, because local taxa are unlikely to have adapted to pesticide exposure and operations often occur during times of high microbial activity. We...

Fire is an integral part of savanna ecology and changes in fire patterns are linked to biodiversity loss in savannas worldwide. In Australia, changed fire regimes are implicated in the contemporary declines of small mammals, riparian species, obligate-seeding plants and grass seed-eating birds. Translating this knowledge into management to recover...

Conservation agencies are often faced with the difficult task of prioritizing what recovery actions receive support. With the number of species under threat of decline growing globally, research that informs conservation priorities is greatly needed. The relative vulnerability of cryptic or nomadic species is often uncertain, because populations ar...

Context Despite the regular use of pesticides to control locusts, there is a lack of information on the effects of locust-control treatments on reptiles worldwide. Exposure to pesticides poses a significant potential hazard to small reptiles, both from the direct effects of exposure, and indirectly because of their largely insectivorous diet and sm...

Conservation agencies are often faced with the difficult task of prioritizing what recovery actions receive support. With the number of species under threat of decline growing globally, research that informs conservation priorities is greatly needed. The relative vulnerability of cryptic or nomadic species is often uncertain, because populations ar...

Seasonal changes in avian hormonal stress responses and condition are well known for common species found at temperate and arctic latitudes, but declining and tropical species are poorly studied. This study compares stress and condition measures of co-occurring declining and non-declining tropical grass finch species in Australia. We monitored decl...

Perception of predation risk by animals living in habitat mosaics moderates movement behaviors, potentially influencing the connectivity of landscapes. Perception of risk varies with environmental factors, which opens the possibility of managing connectivity for animals in fragmented landscapes. Observing understory forest birds wintering in north-...

Perception of predation risk by animals living in habitat mosaics moderates movement behaviors, potentially influencing the connectivity of landscapes. Perception of risk varies with environmental factors, which opens the possibility of managing connectivity for animals in fragmented landscapes. Observing understory forest birds wintering in north-...