Shine Lab
Our aims
Our research concerns the interface between evolution and ecology, particularly in reptiles (snakes and lizards). In recent years, our work has increasingly shifted to focus on major issues in conservation - especially the biology, impact and control of invasive species such as the cane toad.
Rick Shine has worked extensively on evolutionary transitions in life-history traits and on sexually-selected traits. He is also interested in the interplay between different aspects of organismal biology, and how we can translate the results of academic research into effective conservation.
Our research
At the Shine lab we concentrate our research efforts in two key areas - cane toad and reptile research.
Cane toad research
Beginning in the early 1980's and continuing through to the present day, Rick Shine and his colleagues have conducted a major research program on reptiles and their prey species on the floodplain of the Adelaide River 60 kilometers east of Darwin. That work has focused on issues such as the ways in which year-to-year variation in wet-season rainfall influences the ecology of tropical snakes.
Cane toads arrived in this area late in the 2004/5 wet-season, and it was obvious that our longterm studies provided a unique backdrop - a once-in-a-lifetime chance to really understand what effects cane toads have on a complex Australian ecosystem. So, we expanded our studies to include the biology and impact of these toxic invaders.
Visit our website to find out more.
Reptile research
Our current reptile research includes:
- Evolution at the invasion front
- Demography of tropical predators
- Ecology and Reproductive Biology of Tropical Colubrid Snakes
- Evolution of Viviparity
- Evolution of Sexual Dimorphism in Snakes
- Behavioural "Tactics" of Reproducing Snakes
- Conservation Biology of Reptiles
- Habitat Restoration as a Tool for Conservation
- Ecology of Sea Snakes
- Ecological Impact of Cane Toads
Visit our website to find out more.
Opportunities
For information about opportunities to work or collaborate with the Shine Lab, email rick.shine@sydney.edu.au