Student researcher

Jane Williamson Research Leader

Jane Williamson is an ecologist and a PhD candidate at the Australian Catholic University.  Her research interests include fire ecology, specifically determining ecologically sustainable fire interval guidelines that conserve both flora and fauna diversity. 

 Current research:

Prescribed burning is a commonly used tool, designed to reduce fuel loads and limit the extent and intensity of wildfires. Land managers use small-scale prescribed burns to create a mosaic of vegetation patches of differing successional stages (based upon time-since-last fire) across a landscape with the aim of conserving native flora and fauna biodiversity. In NSW, ecologically sustainable fire interval guidelines are based on how different plant species respond to fire, and are derived to enhance and maintain biodiversity. However, there is only limited understanding of whether these fire interval guidelines are adequate for maintaining native animal species diversity. My study aims to increase understanding of the associations between faunal habitat selection and habitat attributes within the recommended fire interval guidelines used to promote plant species diversity.