最新糖心Vlog

• Research Interests

  While the islands of Fiji are relatively small, knowledge of cave bat colonies is still incomplete and ecological studies are in their infancy. Almost all Fijian bat species are threatened with extinction. In my PhD research, I am applying a multi-disciplinary approach combining temporo-spatial acoustic-based surveys and genetic analyses to address critical ecological knowledge gaps for the native and endangered Fijian free-tailed bat Chaerephon bregullae across fragmented landscapes and islands of Fiji.

  I am investigating how bat activity and the seasonal availability of food resources varies with land use types, and cave colony connectivity. I am exploring a single-species derivative of the Habitat Amount Hypothesis (sensu Fahrig 2013) to help understand foraging activity in fragmented systems. The acoustics-based study of foraging habitat preference and diet is centred on the only known colony of C. bregullae at Nakanacagi cave, and population genetic work will sample other areas of occurrence outside the putative nightly flight range of the species to examine population structure.

  The outcomes are critical for conservation strategies for island bats, and will inform long-term forest management and conservation policy in Fiji and the wider Pacific region. 

• Files

  • Summary of Ph.D. study - Summary_of_proposal.pdf [163.1K] (application/pdf)

Entry last updated: Friday, 26 Nov 2021