Alumni

Lab Alumni

Kelly Williams (PhD 2024) – How does animal personality affect translocation success of native mammals? Consequences for threatened species conservation. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe), Kerry Fanson (La Trobe) & Richard Peters (La Trobe)– Kelly is working with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy

Alicia Dimovski (PhD 2024) – Artificial light pollution: quantifying and mitigating the ecological and health consequences in Australian mammals. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Amy Edwards (NSW parks & Wildlife) – Alicia is working in Kerry Fansons lab

Erika Zaid (PhD 2024) – Reproductive sleeplessness in Dasyurid marsupials. Supervised by John Lesku (La Trobe) & Kylie Robert (La Trobe)- Erika is looking into postdoctoral positions

Dr Danielle Eastick (PhD 2023) – Sex in the city: Reproductive ecology of Gould’s wattled bats. – Dani is a researcher with Nature Advisory examining bat strikes at wind turbines

Regan Terry (Masters 2023) – Out foxing the fox. Supervised by James VanDyke (La Trobe), & Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Regan is working as an ecological consultant

Nicholas Gale (Honours 2023) – Elucidating the geographical distribution and threats of the critically endangered Kaputar Rock Skink (Egernia roomi). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe), David Chapple (Monash) & Jules Farquhar (Monash). – Nick is busy writing up 2 papers from his honours research and exploring future research options
William Wilson (Honours 2023) – Prey discrimination by an active foraging elapid snake, the Little Whip Snake (Suta flagellum). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Will gained a consultancy internship and is loving all the field work

Kushini Kularatne (Honours 2022) – Testing the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis in Jacky dragons (Amphibolurus muricatus). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Richard Peters (La Trobe) – Kushini has started a PhD at LTU in 2023

Lauren Sandy (Honours 2021) – Non-invasive glucocorticoid monitoring of Gould’s wattled bats. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Kerry Fanson (La Trobe) – Lauren has been performing casual research assistant work in Kerry Fanson’s lab since submission of her thesis

Dr Steve Griffiths (PhD 2019, Post-doc 2020-2021) – Efficacy of artificial roost-boxes as a conservation tool for tree-roosting bats. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe), Pia Lentini (University of Melbourne) & Dr Lindy Lumsden (Arthur Rylah Institute) Steve is a researcher with the Arthur Rylah Institute and he still working on various funded bat projects in his “spare” time.

Dr Amy Edwards – (Post-doc 2017-2019) Dear old dad: returning to parental sex allocation – Amy is now working as a project officer with NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service based in Dubbo NSW

Melissa von Moger (Honours 2019) – DNA-based diet analysis in fat-tailed dunnarts. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Nick Murphy (La Trobe) – Mel is a PhD candidate in conservation genetics at The Australian National University

Kelly Williams (Honours 2019) – Female mate choice in Spinifex hopping-mice (Notomys alexis): Influence of male body condition and Testosterone levels. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe), Richard Peters (La Trobe), Kerry Fanson (Deakin University), & Prof. Bill Breed (Uni of Adelaide) – Kelly went on to a PhD at LTU in 2020 -2024 and is now working with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy

Murraya Rose (Honours 2019) – Response of scorpions to mammal predator olfactory cues. Supervised by Heloise Gibb (La Trobe) & Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Murraya is a PhD candidate at The Australian National University

Dr Zak Atkins (PhD 2018) – Conservation of the Guthega skink (Liopholis guthega). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Nick Clemann (Arthur Rylah Institute) – Zak is director of his own consultancy – Snowline Ecology and still working with Guthega skink

Brittney Gill (Honours 2018) – Can conservation-breeding programmes be improved by incorporating mate choice?: Testing female mate choice in fat-tailed dunnarts (Sminthopsis crassicaudata). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe), Amy Edwards (La Trobe) & Marissa Parrott (Zoos Victoria) – Britt is currently working at Zoos Victoria

Rhys Madkissi (Honours 2017) – Do juvenile Guthega skink (Liopholis guthega) mimic the colour patterns of the distasetful Alpine grasshopper (Monistra concinna) as an aposematic mechanism to avoid predation? Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Zak Atkins (La Trobe) – Rhys started a PhD at La Trobe in the Centre for Future Landscapes in 2019

Alicia Dimovski (Honours 2016) – Mitigating the ecological impacts of artificial lighting in the highly synchronous breeding Tammar wallaby. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe)- Alicia went on to a PhD and is currently working in Kerry Fanson’s lab

Dr Melissa Walker (Honours 2016) – Dietary energetics in Gould’s wattled bats. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Steve Griffiths (La Trobe) – Melissa gained her PhD from Western Sydney University in 2023 and currently working as a Lecturer and Academic Advisor of the Diploma of Health Science at La Trobe College

Rob Hayes (Honours 2016) – Who’s your daddy? Investigating mating and social systems of the Guthega skink (Liopholis guthega). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & David Chapple (Monash)

Angela Russell (Honours 2016) – Wildlife and roads: A killer combination. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Ange has returned as a PhD candidate at La Trobe in 2022

Dr Nicola Khan (PhD 2015) – The trans-generational effects of maternal stress on Zebra Finch (Taenopygia guttata). Supervised by Kylie Robert & Richard Peters (La Trobe) – Niki became a Lecturer at Nottingham Trent University, UK but has now moved into private industry

James Buxton (Honours 2015) – An investigation into the function of pilosity and sculpturing in ants. Supervised by Heloise Gibb (La Trobe) & Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – James was a PhD candidate at La Trobe

Scott Turnbridge (Honours 2015) – Are mammals important pollinators of Grevillea obtecta? Supervised by Susan Hoebee (La Trobe), Trevor Edwards(La Trobe) & Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Scott is currently working in plant production at the LTU Wildlife Sanctuary

Jacinta Humphrey (Honours 2014) – Ecology and management of the Swamp Skink (Lissolepis coventryi) at Cardinia Reservoir. Supervised by Steve Leonard (La Trobe) & Kylie Robert (La Trobe)- Jacinta went on as a PhD candidate at La Trobe and completed in 2023

Danielle Eastick (Honours 2014) – Does the cassowary’s casque have a thermoregulartory role? Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & John Lesku (La Trobe)- Dani continued as a PhD candidate at La Trobe and completed in 2023

Zak Atkins (Honours 2013) – Ecology of the Guthega skink (Liopholis guthega) in relation to fire history in the Bogong High Plains. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) Nick Clemann (Arthur Rylah Institute) & David Chapple (Monash) – Zak continued as a PhD candidate at La Trobe and completed in 2018. He is currently a director of his own consultancy “Snowline Ecology”

Lydia Rehenberg (Honours 2013) – Social interaction and environmental enrichment on cats in shelters. Supervised by Richard Peters (La Trobe) & Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Lydia is currently a PhD candidate at The University of Melbourne

Larissa Wheeler (Honours 2013) – Marsupial Sex Allocation: Does offspring sex vary with maternal ability to invest during lactation? Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Larissa is now a mum with 2 kids and works with the RSPCA as an adoption coordinator

Emily Moore (Honours 2012) – High density and resource competition drives male-biased sex allocation in a captive breeding colony of Bridled nailtail wallabies (Onychogalea fraenata), in south-western NSW? Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) & Matt Hayward (Australian Wildlife Conservancy) – Emily went back to Uni to study outdoor education, she also recently became a mum

Bridget Doyle (Honours 2012) – Host plant quality drives offspring phenotypes and reproductive investment in a parthenogenetic viviparous aphid. Supervised by Kylie Robert, Martin Steinbauer (La Trobe), Piotr Trebicki (DPI) – Bridget is now a Research Agronomist in South-Western Victoria, working on plant breeding and crop protection

Shannon Braun (Research Project 2011) – Milk composition during lactation is a mechanism for male biased allocation of maternal resources in a wallaby. Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Shannon is a ecologist with a consultancy (Biosis)

Inshani Sappideen (Honours 2011) – Sex allocation, diet and body condition in the Fat-tailed Dunnart (Sminthopsis crassicaudata). Supervised by Kylie Robert (La Trobe) – Inshani returned to study Law at La Trobe

Megan Callander (Honours 2010) – Effects of an endocrine disrupting contaminant (atrazine) on sexual differentiation and offspring fitness in the Murray River Turtle (Emydura macquarii). Supervised by Ricky Spencer (UWS) and Kylie Robert (La Trobe).

Rebecca McCracken (Honours 2009) – Insufficient evidence that disease is preventing the recovery of the key populations of brush-tailed phascogale (Phascogale tapoatafa) in south-western Australia. Supervised by Kylie Robert (UWA/La Trobe) and Adrian Wayne (DEC). Rebecca works for Pendoley Environmental in WA