Team

Richard Reina Professor and Research Group Leader

My research focuses on understanding how animals respond to challenges from their environments and from human activity and then using this knowledge to inform better conservation and management.

Sean WilliamsonPostdoc Scientist

My postdoc is focused on recreational fishers interactions with sharks in Victoria. I also continue to work on sea turtle reproduction and conservation around the world.

Ruben Venegas-LiPostdoc Scientist

On a collaborative project between Monash University and Phillip Island Nature Parks, I am using these data to explore different spatial conservation prioritisation scenarios that allow protecting key little penguins’ foraging areas, while minimizing conflicts with human uses that occur in those places.

Christopher GattoPhD candidate

My PhD is investigating the role of nest moisture in determining primary sex ratios and hatchling performance, with a focus on the ramifications for sex-specific hatchling recruitment.

Licia FinottoPhD candidate

Licia’s PhD aims to understand the effects that fisheries-capture stress causes to Chondrichthyans (sharks, rays and chimaeras), which are among the most vulnerable and threatened fishes,

David AdamsPhD candidate

David’s PhD research aims to increase our understanding of embryonic developmental patterns in reptiles, with a focus on increasing sea turtle reproductive success.

Abigail ParkerPhD candidate

Abi’s PhD will be investigating the role of maternal influence in determining reproductive success in sea turtles

Natarsha BabicPhD candidate

Natarsha’s PhD research aims to investigate the influence of habitat quality and differential hunting regimes on Eurasian brown bear (Ursus arctos) ecophysiology in the Dinaric Mountains.

Leanne NguyenHonours student

My Honours project will be investigating how the diet of little penguins has changed over a 16-year period in response to environmental variation, and the ecological implications that it may have on the population. I’m doing this study in the mega-colony at Phillip Island near Melbourne and my project is co-supervised by Associate Professor Andre Chiaradia from Phillip Island Nature Parks.