Feral Plants Invade the Tropics
Natalie Rossiter
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PhD Student in weed ecology, Charles Darwin University, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems and Tropical Savannas Cooperative Research Centre, Darwin, Northern Territory |
A rural upbringing in northern New South Wales inspired Natalie early in life to work in environmental science. She was the winner of the best student presentation at the Australian Weeds Conference in Wagga Wagga earlier this year.
In 2000 I completed a Bachelor of Science in Australian Environmental Studies at Griffith University, majoring in ecology and soil and water processes. After completing my undergraduate degree I moved to Darwin and started an Honours project (and afterwards a PhD) looking at the environmental impacts of exotic grass invasions. I particularly focused on gamba grass, which is an introduced grass that has invaded parts of northern Australia and poses a serious threat to native ecosystems. I became interested in this issue because it was pertinent in the Darwin region, but since then gamba grass has also become important as an invader in other areas of Australia including Cape York.
One of the aims of my project was to determine how gamba grass is changing the characteristics of the fires that occur in the savannas of northern Australia. The reason that gamba grass does this is that it substantially increases the amount of plant material (fuel load) that is available to burn in the bush. I was able to describe that gamba grass fires were up to 10 times hotter than native grass fires. The importance of this is that these hot fires can kill trees and may, over time, completely destroy the eucalypt tree layer of the savanna.
My goal is to see gamba grass declared a noxious weed in the Northern Territory. I have been working towards this goal for several years, so to finally see gamba grass formally declared as a weed would be very satisfying.
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Natalie Rossiter dwarfed by gamba grass |
I am based at Charles Darwin University in Darwin. The research lab that I work in is made up of lots of young people, and we generally have a lot of fun when we are doing field work (even though it is so very hot in the tropics!).
My fieldwork is based in the tropical savannas of the Northern Territory, near Kakadu. The most enjoyable part of living and working in the tropics is definitely the dry season. It is amazing watching the dry season change gradually into the wet, with the great thunderstorms that this season brings.
Doing fieldwork in the tropics can present some interesting challenges. In the wet season when you are working in the field and there is a large storm it is often too hot and uncomfortable to wear a raincoat so you just have to get wet. It doesn’t matter because once the rain stops you dry out soon after anyway.
My advice to anyone considering a science career is to do lots of experience/volunteer work with various organisations while you are at university. You benefit from volunteering in many different ways, including experiencing new areas of science, learning which fields you enjoy (or don’t enjoy) and also making contact with potential employers.
We asked Natalie about someone who has inspired her in her research and why:
Tim Low is an invasive species biologist who has inspired me as he has really brought the issue of invasive species into the public arena. Through his books he has helped educate the general public about the countless problems Australia experiences due to introduced weeds and the issues that will arise if we choose to ignore this problem.
Books or reading material Natalie recommends on her area of research:
1. Low, T. (1999). Feral Future. Viking, Victoria.
2. Feral Herald. Newsletter of the Invasive Species Council http://www.invasives.org.au/news.htm
