Determining the ecological roles of Australia’s megafaunal marsupials. This project aims to address the near-total lack of ecological knowledge on the unique large herbivores that became extinct in Au

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Determining the ecological roles of Australia’s megafaunal marsupials. This project aims to address the near-total lack of ecological knowledge on the unique large herbivores that became extinct in Australia by 40,000 years ago. By uniting global expertise in palaeontology, ecology and geochemistry, it will employ a novel range of methods to generate foundational knowledge on diets and distributions, transforming our view of large marsupial species and the structure of past communities. The project will shed light on environmental impacts of their extinction, and provide a framework for better understanding how modern ecosystems evolved. This is expected to better contextualise Australia’s vulnerability to large invasive species and fire, and to offer a more data-driven basis for resolving extinction causes.. Scheme: Discovery Projects. Field: 4102 - Ecological Applications. Lead: Prof Gavin Prideaux