Current postgraduate projects
Our 50+ PhD and Masters students are working across northern Australia, in Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Nepal, Ecuador and other locations.
Project topics range from the life history of mouth brooding fish, to food security, carbon farming, climate change and more.
Project supervisors are world-renown in their fields and welcome interest from new students. If you are inspired by these projects CDU is keen to accommodate your needs and link you with funding opportunities.
Current postgraduate projects, sorted by degree, research area, and alphabetically by student's first name
Honours projects
| The impacts of cane toads on the distribution of a variety of vertebrates across northern Australia | Student: Amy Pilmore Supervisor: Brett Murphy |
| Evaluating the short-term success of a translocation of brush-tailed rabbit-rat (Conilurus penicillatus) onto an offshore island at Cobourg Peninsula | Student: Bryn Pickering Supervisor: Sam Banks |
| Kinship dynamics of critically endangered freshwater sawfish in the Daly River | Student: Sam Amini Supervisor: Peter Kyne |
| Using remote sensing to identify environmental impacts of the growing Northern Territory estuarine crocodile populations | Student: Tayhlia Casey Supervisor: Mariana Campbell |
| How does wind impact sheep grazing patterns in arid environments? | Student: Samantha Connor Supervisor: Beth Penrose |
| Synthetic aperture radar remote sensing techniques for the detection of groundwater dependent ecosystems, and the associated depth to groundwater thresholds required to sustain them, in the NT's arid zone | Student: James Pike Supervisor: Richard Crabbe |
| A review of catchment management strategies: Towards an adaptive management plan in the Lower Burdekin Delta | Student: Joel Smith Supervisor: Dylan Irvine |
Masters projects
| Contribution of Bushfire Smoke to Greenhouse Gas Emissions and its Effect on Human Health and Other Living Beings in the Northern Territory | Student: Hafsa Yousuf Nipa Supervisor: Andrew Edwards |
| To what extent does prescribed burning leverage unburnt habitat in subsequent years in central Australian ecosystems? | Student: Rachel Murphy Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| Rating an applicants corporate social responsibility | Student: Andrew Hunt Supervisor: Kamaljit Sangha |
PhD projects
Biodiversity Conservation | |
| The role of disturbances in the distribution and resilience of the savannah-forest mosaics of Asia | Student: Áine Nicholson |
| The ecology of the geckos in Girraween National Park, Queensland | Student: Adrian Gurra Supervisor: Keith Christian |
| Identifying and Conserving Critical Shark Habitat through a Multidisciplinary Approach | Student: Adriana Gonzalez Pestana Supervisor: Peter Kyne |
| Using landscape genetics and other tools to understand how spatial patterns of fire affect the dispersal and persistence of mammals on the Tiwi Islands | Student: Alex Carey Supervisor: Sam Banks |
| eDNA and metabarcoding of terrestrial invertebrates as bioindicators in environmental monitoring | Student: Allyson Malpartida Supervisor: Alan Andersen |
| Implementing deep learning architectures to extract vegetation species composition from drone-based hyperspectral images. | Student: Andrew Esparon Supervisor: Lindsay Hutley |
| The effects of disturbance (primarily fire and grazing) on lizards in Australian tropical savannas | Student: Angga Rachmansah Supervisor: Alan Andersen |
| Attitudinal and behavioural changes in audiences caused by the experience of environmental art | Student: Anthony Albrecht Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| Examining shark and ray catches in small-scale fisheries of the Riau islands to inform conservation planning of a critically endangered wedge fish | Student: Benaya Simeon Supervisor: Peter Kyne |
| Global Science: Governance, Equity & Diversity | Student: Claire Johnston (CJ) Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| Management of global fisheries to aid the conservation of sharks | Student: Dave Drynan Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| Threatened Marine Species Bycatch Mitigation in Northern Australian Fisheries | Student: Emily Taljaard Supervisor: Joni Pini-Fitzsimmons |
| Management for the conservation of the northern quoll (Dasyurus hallucatus) at Weipa | Student: Gavin Trewella Supervisor: Brett Murphy |
| Investigating the interactions of threatening processes that drive mammal population trends on the Tiwi Islands | Student: Georgina Neave Supervisor: Brett Murphy |
| The conservation ecology of the greater bilby (Macrotis lagotis) | Student: Hayley Geyle Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| The effectiveness of the northern long-necked turtle as an umbrella species in the conservation of wetland ecosystems in northern australia, and feasibility of commercialization through understanding nest ecology and incubation | Student: Helen Truscott Supervisor: Erica Garcia |
| Brush-tailed rabbit-rat island translocation | Student: Josh Magro Supervisor: Teigan Cremona |
| Movement ecology and natural mortality of threatened river sharks: informing conservation planning. | Student: Julia Constance Supervisor: Peter Kyne |
| Ecophysiological specialisation of short-range and widespread Gehyra species | Student: Kade (Nukha) Skelton Supervisor: Keith Christian |
| Investigating the connection between individual-based movements and population dynamics of grass finches in northern Australia | Student: Mara Franziska Muller Supervisor: Hamish Campbell |
| Effects of climate and oceanographic change on tropical marine fish and fisheries | Student: Matthew Hammond Supervisor: Keller Kopf |
| The habitat use and genetics of green turtles in the Northern Territory | Student: Natalie Robson Supervisor: Sam Banks |
| Spatial characterization of physiognomic properties of African savanna vegetation for quantification of bushfire emissions and the impact of the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) | Student: Othusitse Lekoko Supervisor: Jeremy Russell-Smith |
| The calibration of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) using uncooled thermal cameras and how the accuracy varies with atmospheric conditions and flight elevation | Student: Razib Ahmed Supervisor: Hamish Campbell |
| Governance of savanna burning carbon projects: maximising beneficial outcomes | Student: Taegan Calnan Supervisor: Jeremy Russell-Smith |
| Response of the glossy black cockatoo to the catastrophic 2019-20 Kangaroo Island fires | Student: Trish Mooney Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| Microbiota and tropical rock oyster health | Student: Zarah Tinning Supervisor: Anna Padovan |
Communities and Livelihoods | |
| Enhancing red rice production in lowland areas of Timor-Leste: variety selection, soil improvement and technology transfer to farmers | Student: Acacio Da Costa Guterres Supervisor: Penny Wurm |
| Optimising coastal marine debris management through RPAS remote sensing and AI-enabled solutions | Student: Aliesha Hvala Supervisor: Hamish Campbell |
| Spatial analysis identifying where in the Northern Territory is suitable for sustainable development of utility-scale solar farms | Student: Billee McGinley Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| Forest-based climate change adaptation for reducing local people's vulnerability | Student: Getahun Kassa Mengesha Supervisor: Kamaljit Sangha |
| Green synthesis of metal nanoparticles using Terminalia ferdinandiana leaf extract: characterization and evaluation of their biological activities | Student: Hansi Alwis Supervisor: Vinuthaa Murthy |
| Ecological processes compromising the consumption of long-necked turtles (Chelodina oblonga) in the Finniss River floodplain, Northern Territory, Australia | Student: Isabel Ely Supervisor: Stephen Garnett |
| The role and contribution of mangroves to gendered food and nutrition security and livelihoods in the Indo-Pacific region | Student: Lulu Middleton Supervisor: Natasha Stacey |
| Changing times, changing tides: Women's engagement in the Northern Territory seafood sector | Student: Nilanjana Biswas Supervisor: Natasha Stacey |
| Vulnerability, resilience and adaptation to Sama-Bajo women fisher livelihood disruptions in Indonesia | Student: Nur Isiyana Wianti Supervisor: Natasha Stacey |
| Developing ecosystem services based economic opportunities for indigenous communities in northern Australia | Student: Oscar Metcalfe Supervisor: Kamaljit Sangha |
| Connections between the wellbeing of indigenous communities and their lands. | Student: Samy Leyton Supervisor: Kamaljit Sangha |
Northern Agriculture | |
| Development of aquaculture techniques for Black Jewfish (Protonibea diacanthus), a new species to aquaculture in Australia | Student: Andrea Taylor Supervisor: Sunil Kadri |
| Rapid diagnosis of root-knot nematode races through an epigenetic and multi-genomic approach | Student: Avalon Yennefer Supervisor: Maxine Piggott |
| Enhancing the resilience of the Northern Territory's rain-fed cotton: A comprehensive approach to yield prediction and water management | Student: Jyothi Bhandari Supervisor: Stephen Xu |
| Implementing silage methods for Bali cattle nutrition and management of seasonal feed gap in East Timor: implications for cattle health | Student: Maria Ortiz Rodriguez Supervisor: Beth Penrose |
| Post-release Mortality and Behaviour of Recreationally Captured Reef Fish | Student: Michael Usher Supervisor: Sunil Kadri |
| Crop monitoring in the NT through remote sensing applications | Student: Pablo Arriaga Velasco Aceves Supervisor: Stephen Xu |
| Unlocking the adaptive strategies of cotton under high soil temperature and nutrient scarcity stress | Student: Saidur Rahman Supervisor: Stephen Xu |
| Understanding gene flow and population structure in an animal disease insect vector | Student: Tomoko (Tomo) Okazaki Supervisor: Maxine Piggott |
| Using Cotton Grain and Cattle Waste to Grow Mushroom for Circular Economy | Student: Waseem Ahmed |
| Recycling of tyres from remote agricultural properties in Northern Territory, Australia | Student: Wesley Van Zanden Supervisor: Beth Penrose |
Savanna and arid ecology | |
| Hollows, termites and long-term fire regimes in tropical savannas | Student: Ellen Rochelmeyer Supervisor: Brett Murphy |
| Does buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris) invasion impact plant-animal interactions in an arid system? | Student: Ellen Ryan-Colton Supervisor: Christine Schlesinger |
| Environmental and disturbance regime constraints on savanna carbon storage in northern Australia | Student: Linda Luck Supervisor: Lindsay Hutley |
| Improving desert fire management with culturally directed science | Student: Stephanie Lee Supervisor: Brett Murphy |
Water and Catchments | |
| Predicting gaseous evasion from streams across tropical Australia | Student: Adam Rexroade Supervisor: Clement Duvert |
| Rainfall characterisation to inform hydrological and hydrogeological insights across northern Australia | Student: Candy Duff Supervisor: Dylan Irvine |
| Climate change, river flows and predator trophic ecology in tropical river-floodplains of northern Australia | Student: Colton Perna Supervisor: Keller Kopf |
| Future climate change impacts on North Australia water resources | Student: Frédérique Mourot Supervisor: Dylan Irvine |
| Environmental and ecological characterisation of subsurface waters in the Magela Creek sand channel | Student: Lisa Chandler Supervisor: Jenny Davis |
| Buffering the rising tide: Mangrove sediment response to accelerating sea level rise in Australia | Student: Madeline Goddard Supervisor: Lindsay Hutley |
| PFAS removal from water using hydrotalcite and hydrotalcite nanoparticles | Student: Maria Ali Supervisor: Vinuthaa Murthy |
| The influence of landcover and other environmental controls on groundwater yields in Sumba, Indonesia. | Student: Penelope Godwin Supervisor: Penny Wurm |
| Climate Change and Water Extraction Impacts on Wetlands Condition in Northern Australia | Student: Porni Mollick Supervisor: Kaline De Mello |
| The ecology and behaviour of terrestrial avifauna associated with long-lasting waterholes of central Australia. | Student: Simon Votto Supervisor: Jenny Davis |
| Exploring continental-scale groundwater-related processes using Australia-wide hydrogeochemical data | Student: Stephen Lee Supervisor: Dylan Irvine |
| Understanding the impact of climate change on freshwater floodplain wetlands, with special focus on aquatic invertebrates and larval fish | Student: Tegan Dedman Supervisor: Keller Kopf |
| The importance of carbon fluxes from seasonal wetlands to streams at a catchment scale in the wet-dry tropics | Student: Vanessa Solano Supervisor: Lindsay Hutley |
Available postgraduate projects
Are you interested in doing a research project? If so, find out what projects we have available. If you’d rather bring your own idea, simply contact a supervisor working in that area.
What's on offer