Graeme Finlayson's research while affiliated with University of Adelaide and other places

... On-ground vegetation surveys, ideally incorporating measures of composition and structure need to be incorporated into the possum monitoring. Although not the focus of this study, we acknowledge the growing evidence of the need for effective kangaroo population reduction to prevent overgrazing, particularly in areas where kangaroo populations are not regulated by a predator (Barton et al. 2011;Manning et al. 2013;Howland et al. 2014Howland et al. , 2016Rees et al. 2017;Mills et al. 2020;Neilly and Cale 2020;Finlayson et al. 2021;Fisher et al. 2021). To deliver effective management interventions we need to understand the drivers of decline. ...

... European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) are prolific burrowers, often producing warrens which house large social groups; they are now Australia's most widespread burrowing mammal (Eldridge and Myers 2001). Rabbits are the most widely distributed and abundant vertebrate pest species in Australia, impacting both natural and agricultural systems (Williams et al. 1995;Cooke 2012;Finlayson et al. 2022). Rabbits cause large, widespread damage across multiple trophic levels in the Australian environment, and exert immense grazing pressure on native vegetation, promote invasive weed species and cause extensive soil damage (Eldridge and Myers 2001;Eldridge and Simpson 2002;Eldridge et al. 2006). ...

... Animals are subjected to annual extremes in water and nutrient availability, with limited access to water or food during summer and autumn months. Feed becomes prevalent after rainfall, which typically occurs in winter and spring, unless the region is in drought [18,23,24]. The species displays significant physiological and behavioural adaptations for water and energy conservation in this harsh environment, including a low basal metabolic rate, ever-growing cheek teeth well-adapted to mechanically reducing food into small particulates, long gut retention times, production of dry faecal pellets, and a relatively inactive, burrowing lifestyle [22][23][24][25][26][27]. ...