Professor Dieter Hochuli
I lead the Integrative Ecology group at The University of Sydney. We use multiscale approaches to examine how nature thrives and survives in urban ecosystems, working on a diverse range of species. I've been at the University since 1995, shortly after completing my PhD.
My work focuses on the ecology of terrestrial arthropods and their interactions with their environments, especially with respect to the plants with which they interact. We work at scales from landscapes down to individuals. I'm currently working on a diverse range of research questions that integrate my interests in community ecology and landscape ecology.
Urban ecology and habitat restoration
My work on insect-plant interactions also has an applied perspective, giving insights into the effects of habitat fragmentation and benefits of ecological restoration. Given that over half the world’s population now live in urban areas and about 80% will by 2050, understanding how urban ecosystems work is vital to our sustainability. Sydney’s remnant vegetation is an ideal model system to work in allowing us to examine the impacts of urbanization and how we can manage what we still have as well as restore degraded systems.
Our work has shown that the declines in many of these urban systems are due to disruptions to ecological interactions. Interestingly, while further declines in functionally important components of diversity are likely to create some degree of ecological mayhem through the breakdown of ecological interactions, our work also points to how these novel urban ecosystems can be surprisingly resilient.
The beauty of trying to understand ecology at landscape scales is that we’re obliged to consider the systems in all their complexity - our work has had to integrate classical experimental approaches in ecology looking at competition, predation and environmental drivers with an understanding of how they interact with invasion, fragmentation and restoration. Our current work is investigating bottom-up and top-down drivers of ecology in urban systems as well as how structural attributes of remnant vegetation contribute to their integrity.
Insect-plant interactions
The simple facts are that the world is dominated by plants that seem to spend their life interacting in all manner of ways with the most speciose group of animals on the planet, insects.
We use multi-species multi-scale approaches to give us a leaf to landscape understanding of insect-plant interactions. We’re currently examining herbivory, pollination and seed dispersal by insects in a number of contexts, looking at everything from the mechanistic underpinnings of the relationships to how landscape disturbances change the integrity of these interactions. This work also targets potential top-down regulation of insect herbivores through predation and parasitism. At coarser scales, I’m interested in the roles of habitat characteristics in regulating assemblages and how organisms make decisions about how they use the habitats around them.
I’m also looking at big picture insect-plant interactions in collaborations with several systematists to identify how co-evolutionary relationships contribute to host specificity among herbivorous insects and ultimately, radiations of insects on different host plants. This is part of a larger project looking at coextinction risks for insects on threatened plants. We’re developing spatially explicitly models for estimating coextinction risk with a view to identifying the extent to which hidden losses of undescribed and unknown herbivores contribute to the extinction crisis.
If you’re interested in working on these sorts of questions with me please have a look at our lab web site and get in touch.
Editorial Board, Journal of Urban Ecology
Ecological Society of Australia
2023 Ecological Society of Australia Gold Medal
2021 SUPRA Supervisor of the Year
2016 Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Research Higher Degree Supervision
2011 The University Co-op Bookshop Excellence in Teaching Award
Project title | Research student |
---|---|
Ecology of floral visitors in restored Cumberland Plain Woodland | Elise OAKMAN |
Eco-Cartography: Mapping Terrain for Multispecies Coexistence | Tracey WOODS |
Selected publications
Publications
Books
- Sadokierski, Z., van Dooren, T., Hochuli, D., Martin, J., Burrell, A. (2022). The Urban Field Naturalist Project: A Guide to the Creatures in Your Neighbourhood. Sydney: Murdoch Books.
Edited Books
- Lunney, D., Hutchings, P., Hochuli, D. (2011). The Natural History of Sydney. Mosman NSW 2088: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales.
Book Chapters
- Hochuli, D., Threlfall, C. (2018). Planning for protection: Promoting pest suppressing urban landscapes through habitat management. In Alessandro Ossola, Jari Niemela (Eds.), Urban Biodiversity: From Research to Practice, (pp. 54-70). Oxon: Routledge. [More Information]
- Hochuli, D., Christie, F., Lomov, B. (2009). Invertebrate biodiversity in urban landscapes: assessing remnant habitat and its restoration. In Mark J. McDonnell, Amy K. Hahs, Jurgen H. Breuste (Eds.), Ecology of Cities and Towns: A Comparative Approach, (pp. 215-232). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
- Wratten, S., Hochuli, D., Gurr, G., Tylianakis, J., Scarratt, S. (2007). Conservation, Biodiversity and Integrated Pest Management. Perspectives in ecological theory and integrated pest management, (pp. 223-224). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Journals
- Threlfall, C., Farrell, C., Lequerica Tamara, M., Hochuli, D. (2024). Reimagining urban habitats to benefit people and nature. Australian Zoologist, 43(4), 495-501. [More Information]
- Hall, M., Martin, J., Burns, A., Hochuli, D. (2024). The decline, fall, and rise of a large urban colonising bird. Wildlife Research, 51(7), WR23156. [More Information]
- Threlfall, C., Hochuli, D., van der Ree, R., Kendal, D., Ordóñez-Barona, C., Livesley, S., Baumann, J., Callow, D., Davern, M., English, A., et al (2024). Tree removals as socioecological experiments in cities. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 22(1), e2686. [More Information]
Conferences
- Lunney, D., Hutchings, P., Hochuli, D., Recher, H. (2010). Is the natural history of Sydney so camouflaged that it will not survive? Royal Zoological Society of NSW 2007 Forum The Natural History of Sydney, Mosman, NSW: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. [More Information]
2024
- Threlfall, C., Farrell, C., Lequerica Tamara, M., Hochuli, D. (2024). Reimagining urban habitats to benefit people and nature. Australian Zoologist, 43(4), 495-501. [More Information]
- Hall, M., Martin, J., Burns, A., Hochuli, D. (2024). The decline, fall, and rise of a large urban colonising bird. Wildlife Research, 51(7), WR23156. [More Information]
- Threlfall, C., Hochuli, D., van der Ree, R., Kendal, D., Ordóñez-Barona, C., Livesley, S., Baumann, J., Callow, D., Davern, M., English, A., et al (2024). Tree removals as socioecological experiments in cities. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 22(1), e2686. [More Information]
2023
- Taylor, C., Hochuli, D., Banks, P. (2023). Activity and movement of small mammal tick hosts at the urban fringes of Sydney, Australia. Wildlife Research, 50(11), 927-938. [More Information]
- Taylor, C., Egan, S., Gofton, A., Irwin, P., Oskam, C., Hochuli, D., Banks, P. (2023). An invasive human commensal and a native marsupial maintain tick populations at the urban fringe. Medical and Veterinary Entomology. [More Information]
- Taylor, C., Lydecker, H., Hochuli, D., Banks, P. (2023). Associations between wildlife observations, human-tick encounters and landscape features in a peri-urban tick hotspot. Urban Ecosystems, 26(5), 1439-1454. [More Information]
2022
- Keith, R., Given, L., Martin, J., Hochuli, D. (2022). Collaborating with qualitative researchers to co-design social-ecological studies. Austral Ecology. [More Information]
- Keith, R., Given, L., Martin, J., Hochuli, D. (2022). Environmental self-identity partially mediates the effects of exposure and connection to nature on urban children's conservation behaviours. Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology, 3. [More Information]
- Kendal, D., Ordóñez, C., Davern, M., Fuller, R., Hochuli, D., van der Ree, R., Livesley, S., Threlfall, C. (2022). Public satisfaction with urban trees and their management in Australia: The roles of values, beliefs, knowledge, and trust. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 73. [More Information]
2021
- Goddard, M., Davies, Z., Guenat, S., Ferguson, M., Fisher, J., Akanni, A., Ahjokoski, T., Anderson, P., Angeoletto, F., Antoniou, C., Hochuli, D., et al (2021). A global horizon scan of the future impacts of robotics and autonomous systems on urban ecosystems. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 5(2), 219-230. [More Information]
- Hall, M., Martin, J., Burns, A., Hochuli, D. (2021). Ecological insights into a charismatic bird using different citizen science approaches. Austral Ecology, 46(8), 1255-1265. [More Information]
- Lequerica Tamara, M., Latty, T., Threlfall, C., Hochuli, D. (2021). Major insect groups show distinct responses to local and regional attributes of urban green spaces. Landscape and Urban Planning, 216, 104238. [More Information]
2020
- Ordóñez, C., Threlfall, C., Livesley, S., Kendal, D., Fuller, R., Davern, M., van der Ree, R., Hochuli, D. (2020). Decision-making of municipal urban forest managers through the lens of governance. Environmental Science and Policy, 104, 136-147. [More Information]
- Hall, M., Burns, A., Martin, J., Hochuli, D. (2020). Flight initiation distance changes across landscapes and habitats in a successful urban coloniser. Urban Ecosystems, 23(4), 785-791. [More Information]
- Taylor, L., Leckey, E., Hochuli, D. (2020). Focus groups identify optimum urban nature in four Australian and New Zealand cities. Urban Ecosystems, 23(1), 199-213. [More Information]
2019
- Leonard, R., Pettit, T., Irga, P., McArthur, C., Hochuli, D. (2019). Acute exposure to urban air pollution impairs olfactory learning and memory in honeybees. Ecotoxicology, 28(9), 1056-1062. [More Information]
- Lydecker, H., Banks, P., Hochuli, D. (2019). Counting Ticks (Acari: Ixodida) on Hosts Is Complex: A Review and Comparison of Methods. Journal of Medical Entomology, 56(6), 1527-1533. [More Information]
- Hanford, J., Webb, C., Hochuli, D. (2019). Habitat Traits Associated with Mosquito Risk and Aquatic Diversity in Urban Wetlands. Wetlands, 39(4), 743-758. [More Information]
2018
- Lowe, E., Threlfall, C., Wilder, S., Hochuli, D. (2018). Environmental drivers of spider community composition at multiple scales along an urban gradient. Biodiversity and Conservation, 27(4), 829-852. [More Information]
- Leonard, R., McArthur, C., Hochuli, D. (2018). Habitat complexity does not affect arthropod community composition in roadside greenspaces. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 30, 108-114. [More Information]
- Hochuli, D., Threlfall, C. (2018). Planning for protection: Promoting pest suppressing urban landscapes through habitat management. In Alessandro Ossola, Jari Niemela (Eds.), Urban Biodiversity: From Research to Practice, (pp. 54-70). Oxon: Routledge. [More Information]
2017
- Calver, M., Adam, P., van Dooren, T., Rose, D., Wallis, I., Banks, P., Hochuli, D. (2017). Dangerous Ideas in zoology: Plenary session 2. Australian Zoologist, 38(3), 414-421. [More Information]
- Taylor, L., Hochuli, D. (2017). Defining greenspace: Multiple uses across multiple disciplines. Landscape and Urban Planning, 158, 25-38. [More Information]
- Lee, T., Evans, T., Cameron, S., Hochuli, D., Ho, S., Lo, N. (2017). Ecological diversification of the Australian Coptotermes termites and the evolution of mound building. Journal of Biogeography, 44, 1405-1417. [More Information]
2016
- McElroy, D., Doblin, M., Murphy, R., Hochuli, D., Coleman, R. (2016). A limited legacy effect of copper in marine biofilms. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 109, 117-127. [More Information]
- Leonard, R., McArthur, C., Hochuli, D. (2016). A multistressor, multitrait approach to assessing the effects of wind and dust on Eucalyptus tereticornis. American Journal of Botany, 103(8), 1466-1471. [More Information]
- Leonard, R., McArthur, C., Hochuli, D. (2016). Exposure to wind alters insect herbivore behaviour in larvae of Uraba lugens (Lepidoptera: Nolidae). Austral Entomology, 55(3), 242-246. [More Information]
2015
- Lydecker, H., Stanfield, E., Lo, N., Hochuli, D., Banks, P. (2015). Are urban bandicoots solely to blame for tick concerns? Australian Zoologist, 37(3), 288-293. [More Information]
- Taylor, L., Hochuli, D. (2015). Creating better cities: how biodiversity and ecosystem functioning enhance urban residents' wellbeing. Urban Ecosystems, 18(3), 747-762. [More Information]
- Van den Berg, F., Thompson, M., Hochuli, D. (2015). When hot rocks get hotter: behavior and acclimatization mitigate exposure to extreme temperatures in a spider. Ecosphere, 6(5), 1-17. [More Information]
2014
- Low, P., McArthur, C., Hochuli, D. (2014). Dealing with your past: experience of failed predation suppresses caterpillar feeding behaviour. Animal Behaviour, 90, 337-343. [More Information]
- Low, P., Sam, K., McArthur, C., Posa, M., Hochuli, D. (2014). Determining predator identity from attack marks left in model caterpillars: guidelines for best practice. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata, 152(2), 120-126. [More Information]
- Low, P., McArthur, C., Fisher, K., Hochuli, D. (2014). Elevated volatile concentrations in high-nutrient plants: do insect herbivores pay a high price for good food? Ecological Entomology, 39(4), 480-491. [More Information]
2013
- Matias, M., Coleman, R., Hochuli, D., Underwood, A. (2013). Macrofaunal Responses to Edges Are Independent of Habitat-Heterogeneity in Experimental Landscapes. PloS One, 8(4), 1-8. [More Information]
- Low, P., Angus, W., Wagner, A., Wilkin, D., Shiels, M., Dockerill, R., Hochuli, D. (2013). Use of spider silk for nest building by the Regent Honeyeater Anthochaera phrygia and the Helmeted Honeyeater Lichenostomus melanops cassidix. Australian Zoologist, 36(3), 349-354. [More Information]
2012
- Powell, F., Hochuli, D., Symonds, C., Cassis, G. (2012). Are psyllids affiliated with the threatened plants Acacia ausfeldii, A. dangarensis and A. gordonii at risk of co-extinction? Austral Ecology, 37(1), 140-148. [More Information]
2011
- Powell, F., Hochuli, D., Cassis, G. (2011). A new host and additional localities for the rare psyllid Acizzia keithi Taylor and Moir (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). Australian Journal of Entomology, 50(4), 441-444. [More Information]
- Matias, M., Underwood, A., Hochuli, D., Coleman, R. (2011). Habitat identity influences species-area relationships in heterogeneous habitats. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 437, 135-145. [More Information]
- Lunney, D., Hutchings, P., Hochuli, D. (2011). The Natural History of Sydney. Mosman NSW 2088: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales.
2010
- Matias, M., Underwood, A., Hochuli, D., Coleman, R. (2010). Independent effects of patch size and structural complexity on diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates. Ecology, 91(7), 1908-1915. [More Information]
- Lunney, D., Hutchings, P., Hochuli, D., Recher, H. (2010). Is the natural history of Sydney so camouflaged that it will not survive? Royal Zoological Society of NSW 2007 Forum The Natural History of Sydney, Mosman, NSW: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. [More Information]
- Lomov, B., Keith, D., Hochuli, D. (2010). Pollination and Plant Reproductive Success in Restored Urban Landscapes Dominated by a Pervasive Exotic Pollinator. Landscape and Urban Planning, 96, 232-239. [More Information]
2009
- Hochuli, D., Christie, F., Lomov, B. (2009). Invertebrate biodiversity in urban landscapes: assessing remnant habitat and its restoration. In Mark J. McDonnell, Amy K. Hahs, Jurgen H. Breuste (Eds.), Ecology of Cities and Towns: A Comparative Approach, (pp. 215-232). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
- Lomov, B., Keith, D., Hochuli, D. (2009). Linking ecological function to species composition in ecological restoration: Seed removal by ants in recreated woodland. Austral Ecology, 34, 751-760. [More Information]
- Blamires, S., Hochuli, D., Thompson, M. (2009). Prey protein influences growth and decoration building in the orb web spider Argiope keyserlingi. Ecological Entomology, 34, 545-550. [More Information]
2008
- Hochuli, D., Banks, P. (2008). Selection pressures on zoology teaching in Australian universities: student perceptions of zoological education and how to improve it. Australian Zoologist, 34(4), 544-553. [More Information]
- Lassau, S., Hochuli, D. (2008). Testing predictions of beetle community patterns derived empirically using remote sensing. Diversity and Distributions, 14(1), 138-147. [More Information]
- Blamires, S., Hochuli, D., Thompson, M. (2008). Why cross the web: decoration spectral properties and prey capture in an orb spider (Argiope keyserlingi) web. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 94(2), 221-229. [More Information]
2007
- Lassau, S., Hochuli, D. (2007). Associations between wasp communities and forest structure: Do strong local patterns hold across landscapes? Austral Ecology, 32(6), 656-662. [More Information]
- Wratten, S., Hochuli, D., Gurr, G., Tylianakis, J., Scarratt, S. (2007). Conservation, Biodiversity and Integrated Pest Management. Perspectives in ecological theory and integrated pest management, (pp. 223-224). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Blamires, S., Hochuli, D., Thompson, M. (2007). Does decoration building influence antipredator responses in an orb-web spider (Argiope keyserlingi) in its natural habitat? Australian Journal of Zoology, 55(1), 1-7. [More Information]
2006
- Lomov, B., Keith, D., Britton, D., Hochuli, D. (2006). Are butterflies and moths useful indicators for restoration monitoring? A pilot study in Sydney's Cumberland Plain Woodland. Ecological Management and Restoration, 7(3), 204-210. [More Information]
- Goldsbrough, C., Shine, R., Hochuli, D. (2006). Factors affecting retreat-site selection by coppertail skinks (Ctenotus taeniolatus) from sandstone outcrops in eastern Australia. Austral Ecology, 31(3), 326-336. [More Information]
- Tatarnic, N., Cassis, G., Hochuli, D. (2006). Traumatic insemination in the plant bug genus Coridromius Signoret (Heteroptera: Miridae). Biology Letters, 2(1), 58-61. [More Information]
2005
- Lassau, S., Hochuli, D., Cassis, G., Reid, C. (2005). Effects of habitat complexity on forest beetle diversity: do functional groups respond consistently? Diversity and Distributions, 11(1), 73-82. [More Information]
- Christie, F., Hochuli, D. (2005). Elevated levels of herbivory in urban landscapes: are declines in tree health more than an edge effect? Ecology and Society, 10(1), 1-9. [More Information]
- Lassau, S., Cassis, G., Flemons, P., Wilkie, L., Hochuli, D. (2005). Using high-resolution multi-spectral imagery to estimate habitat complexity in open-canopy forests: can we predict ant community patterns? Ecography, 28(4), 495-504. [More Information]
2004
- Hochuli, D., Gibb, H., Burrows, S., Christie, F. (2004). Ecology Of Sydney's Urban Fragments: Has Fragmentation Taken The Sting Out Of Insect Herbivory? In Not known (Eds.), Urban Wildlife: more than meets the eye, (pp. 63-69). Mosman: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales.
- Lassau, S., Hochuli, D. (2004). Effects Of Habitat Complexity On Ant Assemblages. Ecography, 27(2), 157-164. [More Information]
- Goldsbrough, C., Hochuli, D., Shine, R. (2004). Fitness Benefits of Retreat-site selection: Spiders, Rocks, and Thermal Cues. Ecology, 85(6), 1635-1641. [More Information]
2003
- Gibb, H., Hochuli, D. (2003). Colonisation by a dominant ant facilitated by anthropogenic disturbance: effects on ant assemblage composition, biomass and resource use. Oikos, 103(3), 469-478. [More Information]
- Goldsbrough, C., Hochuli, D., Shine, R. (2003). Invertebrate biodiversity under hot rocks: habitat use by the fauna of sandstone outcrops in the Sydney region. Biological Conservation, 109(1), 85-93. [More Information]
- Gibb, H., Hochuli, D. (2003). Nest relocation in the golden spiny ant, Polyrhachis ammon: environmental cues and temporal castes. Insectes Sociaux, 50(4), 323-329. [More Information]
2002
- Gibb, H., Hochuli, D. (2002). Habitat fragmentation in an urban environment: large and small fragments support different arthropod assemblages. Biological Conservation, 106(1), 91-100. [More Information]
2001
- Hochuli, D. (2001). Insect herbivory and ontogeny: How do growth and development influence feeding behaviour, morphology and host use? Austral Ecology, 26, 563-570. [More Information]
Selected Grants
2024
- Biodiversity mapping of railway corridors, Hochuli D, Sydney Environment Institute/Collaborative Grant
- Effects of urbanisation on social behaviours and interactions in bat assemblage, Hochuli D, Kao M, Ecological Society of Australia/Student Research Grant
2023
- Glebe's Hill - Unravelling its Biodiversity Secrets and Potential - Research Collaboration Agreement under funding agreement with City of Sydney Council., Hochuli D, The Glebe Society/Research Support
Indulgences
Rare books exhibition at Fisher Library
In addition to my scientific research I have also curated a rare books exhibition examining how early observers predicted current environmental issues in Australia, judged environmental film festivals and performed standup comedy at the Sydney Festival's Bright Club. The rare books exhibition at Fisher Library in 2009 gave me the chance to indulge my interests in art and history. Browsing through the treasures buried deep in the basement of the library’s rare books collection was sobering – it seems that folk looking at Australian systems in the 1850s knew that things like extinction and irreversible environmental degradation were inevitable unless we started to look after a our environment. Needless to say they were right.
Rare books exhibition at Fisher Library in 2009
Dieter Hochuli at Bright Club at Sydney Festival 2012
And if you have 10minutes spare, here's the most terrifying presentation I ever gave...
all in the name of comedy.
In the media
Survival in The City
The lab's work features extensively in this piece in the Sydney Morning Herald