Fuller Lab

People just like you and me have caused a huge biodiversity crisis, pushing many species to the brink of extinction and beyond. Doing something about this is one of the most important and urgent problems globally.

We are a group of researchers headed by Richard Fuller and based at the University of Queensland in Brisbane. We are studying how people have affected the natural world around them, and how some of their destructive effects can best be reversed. On the flip side, we are also keen to understand whether and how people can benefit positively from experiences of biodiversity.

To answer these questions we work on pure and applied topics in biodiversity and conservation, spanning the fields of conservation planning, conservation psychology and urban ecology. Much of our work is interdisciplinary, focusing on the interactions between people and nature, how these can be enhanced, and how these relationships can be shaped to converge on coherent solutions to the biodiversity crisis.

Formed in January 2010, we are a young and rapidly growing lab, publishing in high quality journals including Nature, Science, PLoS Biology, TREE, Proceedings B etc. Have a browse through the website to get a feel for the kind of work we do.

What is conservation science really about?

Standing Left to Right: Veronica Gama, Si-liang Lin, Jeff Choo, Jeff Hanson, Muu Akasaka, Danielle Shanahan, Maddy Stigner, Dylan Moffitt, Jo Towsey, Rich Fuller

Sitting Left to Right: Bella Gama, Jeremy Ringma, Jimmy Choi, Lara Franco, Hsien-yung Lin, Emily Fuller, Claire Fuller, Hannah Wauchope, Kiran Dhanjal-Adams, Jasmine Lee

Recent News
- The reptile relocation industry in Australia: Perspectives from operators
- Derez CM & Fuller RA (2023) The reptile relocation industry in Australia: Perspectives from operators. Diversity, 15, 343.
- Three-quarters of insect species are insufficiently represented by protected areas
- Chowdhury S, Zalucki MP, Hanson JO, Tiatragul S, Green D, Watson JEM & Fuller RA (2023) Three-quarters of insect species are insufficiently represented by protected areas. One Earth, 6, 1-8.
- Taiwan’s Breeding Bird Survey reveals very few declining species
- Lin D-L, Ko J C-J, Amano T, Hsu C-T, Fuller RA, Maron M, Fan M-W, Pursner S, Wu T-Y, Wu S-H, Chen W-J, Bayraktarov E, Mundkur T, Lin R-S, Ding T-S, Lee Y-J & Lee P-F (2023) Taiwan’s Breeding Bird Survey reveals very few declining species. Ecological Indicators, 146, 109839.
- FlywayNet: A hidden semi-Markov model for inferring the structure of migratory bird networks from count data
- Nicol S, Cros M-J, Peyrard N, Sabbadin R, Trépos R, Fuller RA & Woodworth BK (2023) FlywayNet: A hidden semi-Markov model for inferring the structure of migratory bird networks from count data. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 14, 265-279.
- Protected areas and the future of insect conservation
- Chowdhury S, Jennions MD, Zalucki MP, Maron M, Watson JEM & Fuller RA (2023) Protected areas and the future of insect conservation. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 38, 85-95.
- Threat management priorities for conserving Antarctic biodiversity
- Lee JR, Terauds A, Carwardine J, Shaw JD, Fuller RA, Possingham HP, Chown SL, Convey P, Gilbert N, Hughes KA, McIvor E, Robinson SA, Ropert-Coudert Y, Bergstrom DM, Biersma EM, Christian C, Cowan DA, Frenot Y, Jenouvrier S, Kelley L, Lee MJ, Lynch HJ, Njåstad B, Queseda A, Roura RM, Ashley Shaw E, Stanwell-Smith D, […]
- Backyard buzz: Human population density modifies the value of vegetation cover for insect pollinators in a subtropical city
- Persson AS, Westman A, Smith TJ, Mayfield MM, Olsson P, Smith HG & Fuller RA (2022) Backyard buzz: Human population density modifies the value of vegetation cover for insect pollinators in a subtropical city. Urban Ecosystems, 25, 1875-1890.
- Trends and progress in studying butterfly migration
- Chowdhury S, Zalucki MP, Amano T, Poch TJ, Lin M-M, Ohwaki A, Lin D-L, Yang L, Choi S-W, Jennions MD & Fuller RA (2022) Trends and progress in studying butterfly migration. Integrative Conservation, 1, 8-24.
- Beyond the ecocentric: Diverse values and attitudes influence engagement in pro-environmental behaviours
- Sockhill NJ, Dean AJ, Oh RRY & Fuller RA (2022) Beyond the ecocentric: Diverse values and attitudes influence engagement in pro-environmental behaviours. People and Nature, 5, 1500-1512.
- The benefits of contributing to the citizen science platform iNaturalist as an identifier
- Callaghan CT, Mesaglio T, Ascher JS, Brooks TM, Cabras AA, Chandler M, Cornwell WK, Cristóbal Ríos-Málaver IC, Dankowicz E, Dhiya’ulhaq NU, Fuller RA, Galindo-Leal C, Grattarola F, Hewitt S, Higgins L, Hitchcock C, Hung K-LJ, Iwane T, Kahumbu P, Kendrick R, Kieschnick SR, Kunz G, Lee CC, Lin C-T, Loarie S, Medina MN, McGrouther MA, […]
- An emerging coastal wetland management dilemma between mangrove expansion and shorebird conservation
- Choi C-Y, Xiao H, Jia M, Jackson MV, Lai Y-C, Murray NJ, Gibson L & Fuller RA (2022) An emerging coastal wetland management dilemma between mangrove expansion and shorebird conservation. Conservation Biology, 36, e13905.
- High-resolution global maps of tidal flat ecosystems from 1984 to 2019
- Murray NJ, Phinn SP, Fuller RA, DeWitt M, Ferrari R, Johnston R, Clinton N & Lyons MB (2022) High-resolution global maps of tidal flat ecosystems from 1984 to 2019. Scientific Data, 9, 542.
- Characteristics of immersive citizen science experiences that drive conservation engagement
- Day G, Fuller RA, Nichols C & Dean AJ (2022) Characteristics of immersive citizen science experiences that drive conservation engagement. People and Nature, 4, 983-995.
- Connection to nature and time spent in gardens predicts social cohesion
- Oh RRY, Zhang Y, Nghiem LTP, Chang C-C, Tan CLY, Quazi SA, Shanahan DF, Lin BB, Gaston KJ, Fuller RA & Carrasco RL (2022) Connection to nature and time spent in gardens predicts social cohesion. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 74, 127655.
- Generating unbiased estimates of burrowing seabird populations
- Bird JP, Terauds A, Fuller RA, Pascoe PP, Travers TD, McInnes JC, Alderman R & Shaw JD (2022) Generating unbiased estimates of burrowing seabird populations. Ecography, 2022, e06204.
- Generating population estimates for migratory shorebird species in the world’s largest flyway
- Hansen BD, Rogers DI, Watkins D, Weller DR, Clemens RS, Newman M, Woehler EJ, Mundkur T & Fuller RA (2022) Generating population estimates for migratory shorebird species in the world’s largest flyway. Ibis,164, 735-749.
- Public satisfaction with urban trees and their management: the roles of values, beliefs, knowledge, and trust
- Kendal D, Ordóñez C, Davern M, Fuller RA, Hochuli DF, van der Ree R, Livesley SJ & Threlfall CG (2022) Public satisfaction with urban trees and their management: the roles of values, beliefs, knowledge, and trust. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 73, 127623.
- Efficient small-scale marine reserve design requires high-resolution biodiversity and stakeholder data
- Rowell DA, Arafeh-Dalmau N, Fuller RA, Possingham HP & Hereu B (2022) Efficient small-scale marine reserve design requires high-resolution biodiversity and stakeholder data. Ocean and Coastal Management, 223, 106152.
- Protected areas have a mixed impact on waterbirds, but management helps
- Wauchope HS, Jones JPG, Geldmann J, Simmons BI, Amano T, Blanco DE, Fuller RA, Johnston A, Langendoen T, Mundkur T, Nagy S & Sutherland WJ (2022) Protected areas have a mixed impact on waterbirds, but management helps. Nature, 605, 103-107.
- Language barriers in global bird conservation
- Negret PJ, Atkinson SC, Woodworth BK, Corella Tor M, Allan JR, Fuller RA & Amano T (2022) Language barriers in global bird conservation. PLoS ONE, 17, e0267151.
- Trialling camera traps to determine occupancy and breeding in burrowing seabirds
- Bird JP, Fuller RA, Pascoe PP & Shaw JD (2022) Trialling camera traps to determine occupancy and breeding in burrowing seabirds. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation, 8, 180-190.
- Effects of anthropogenic landscapes on population maintenance of waterbirds
- Wang X, Li X, Ren X, Jackson MV, Fuller RA, Melville DS, Amano T & Ma Z (2022) Effects of anthropogenic landscapes on population maintenance of waterbirds. Conservation Biology, 36, e13808.
- Changes in green space use during a COVID-19 lockdown are associated with both individual and green space characteristics
- Berdejo-Espinola V, Zahnow R, Suárez-Castro AF, Rhodes JR & Fuller RA (2022) Changes in green space use during a COVID-19 lockdown are associated with both individual and green space characteristics. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10, 804443.
- Protected areas in South Asia: Status and prospects
- Chowdhury S, Alam S, Labi MM, Khan N, Rokonuzzaman M, Biswas D, Tahea T, Mukul SA & Fuller RA (2022) Protected areas in South Asia: Status and prospects. Science of the Total Environment, 811, 152316.
- China’s Ecological Conservation Redline policy is a new opportunity to meet post-2020 protected area targets
- Choi C-Y, Shi X, Shi J, Gan X, Wen C, Zhang J, Jackson MV, Fuller RA & Gibson L (2022) China’s Ecological Conservation Redline policy is a new opportunity to meet post-2020 protected area targets. Conservation Letters, 5, e12853.
- Narrowly distributed taxa are disproportionately informative for conservation planning
- Akasaka M, Kadoya T, Fujita T & Fuller RA (2022) Narrowly distributed taxa are disproportionately informative for conservation planning. Scientific Reports, 12, 2229.
- People’s desire to be in nature and how they experience it are partially heritable
- Chang C-c, Cox DTC, Fan Q, Nghiem TPL, Tan CLY, Oh RRY, Lin BB, Shanahan DF, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ & Carrasco LR (2022) People’s desire to be in nature and how they experience it are partially heritable. PLoS Biology, 20, e3001500.
- Genetic contribution to concern for nature and proenvironmental behaviour
- Chang C-c, Nghiem TPL, Fan Q, Tan CLY, Oh RRY, Lin BB, Shanahan DF, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ & Carrasco LR (2022) Genetic contribution to concern for nature and proenvironmental behaviour. Bioscience, 72, 160-165.
- Where nothing stands still: Quantifying nomadism in Australian arid-zone birds
- Gibson MR, Runge CA, Stephens PA, Fuller RA & Willis SG (2022) Where nothing stands still: Quantifying nomadism in Australian arid-zone birds. Landscape Ecology, 37, 191-208.
- Differential population trends align with migratory connectivity in an endangered shorebird
- Morrick ZN, Lilleyman A, Fuller RA, Bush R, Coleman JT, Garnett ST, Gerasimov YN, Jessop R, Ma Z, Maglio G, Minton CDT, Syroechkovskiy E & Woodworth BK (2022) Differential population trends align with migratory connectivity in an endangered shorebird. Conservation Science and Practice, 4, e594.

Recent News

Derez CM & Fuller RA (2023) The reptile relocation industry in Australia: Perspectives from operators. Diversity, 15, 343.

Chowdhury S, Zalucki MP, Hanson JO, Tiatragul S, Green D, Watson JEM & Fuller RA (2023) Three-quarters of insect species are insufficiently represented by protected areas. One Earth, 6, 1-8.

Lin D-L, Ko J C-J, Amano T, Hsu C-T, Fuller RA, Maron M, Fan M-W, Pursner S, Wu T-Y, Wu S-H, Chen W-J, Bayraktarov E, Mundkur T, Lin R-S, Ding T-S, Lee Y-J & Lee P-F (2023) Taiwan’s Breeding Bird Survey reveals very few declining species. Ecological Indicators, 146, 109839.

Nicol S, Cros M-J, Peyrard N, Sabbadin R, Trépos R, Fuller RA & Woodworth BK (2023) FlywayNet: A hidden semi-Markov model for inferring the structure of migratory bird networks from count data. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 14, 265-279.

Chowdhury S, Jennions MD, Zalucki MP, Maron M, Watson JEM & Fuller RA (2023) Protected areas and the future of insect conservation. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 38, 85-95.

Persson AS, Westman A, Smith TJ, Mayfield MM, Olsson P, Smith HG & Fuller RA (2022) Backyard buzz: Human population density modifies the value of vegetation cover for insect pollinators in a subtropical city. Urban Ecosystems, 25, 1875-1890.

Chowdhury S, Zalucki MP, Amano T, Poch TJ, Lin M-M, Ohwaki A, Lin D-L, Yang L, Choi S-W, Jennions MD & Fuller RA (2022) Trends and progress in studying butterfly migration. Integrative Conservation, 1, 8-24.

Sockhill NJ, Dean AJ, Oh RRY & Fuller RA (2022) Beyond the ecocentric: Diverse values and attitudes influence engagement in pro-environmental behaviours. People and Nature, 5, 1500-1512.

Choi C-Y, Xiao H, Jia M, Jackson MV, Lai Y-C, Murray NJ, Gibson L & Fuller RA (2022) An emerging coastal wetland management dilemma between mangrove expansion and shorebird conservation. Conservation Biology, 36, e13905.

Murray NJ, Phinn SP, Fuller RA, DeWitt M, Ferrari R, Johnston R, Clinton N & Lyons MB (2022) High-resolution global maps of tidal flat ecosystems from 1984 to 2019. Scientific Data, 9, 542.

Day G, Fuller RA, Nichols C & Dean AJ (2022) Characteristics of immersive citizen science experiences that drive conservation engagement. People and Nature, 4, 983-995.

Oh RRY, Zhang Y, Nghiem LTP, Chang C-C, Tan CLY, Quazi SA, Shanahan DF, Lin BB, Gaston KJ, Fuller RA & Carrasco RL (2022) Connection to nature and time spent in gardens predicts social cohesion. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 74, 127655.

Bird JP, Terauds A, Fuller RA, Pascoe PP, Travers TD, McInnes JC, Alderman R & Shaw JD (2022) Generating unbiased estimates of burrowing seabird populations. Ecography, 2022, e06204.

Hansen BD, Rogers DI, Watkins D, Weller DR, Clemens RS, Newman M, Woehler EJ, Mundkur T & Fuller RA (2022) Generating population estimates for migratory shorebird species in the world’s largest flyway. Ibis,164, 735-749.

Kendal D, Ordóñez C, Davern M, Fuller RA, Hochuli DF, van der Ree R, Livesley SJ & Threlfall CG (2022) Public satisfaction with urban trees and their management: the roles of values, beliefs, knowledge, and trust. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 73, 127623.

Rowell DA, Arafeh-Dalmau N, Fuller RA, Possingham HP & Hereu B (2022) Efficient small-scale marine reserve design requires high-resolution biodiversity and stakeholder data. Ocean and Coastal Management, 223, 106152.

Wauchope HS, Jones JPG, Geldmann J, Simmons BI, Amano T, Blanco DE, Fuller RA, Johnston A, Langendoen T, Mundkur T, Nagy S & Sutherland WJ (2022) Protected areas have a mixed impact on waterbirds, but management helps. Nature, 605, 103-107.

Negret PJ, Atkinson SC, Woodworth BK, Corella Tor M, Allan JR, Fuller RA & Amano T (2022) Language barriers in global bird conservation. PLoS ONE, 17, e0267151.

Bird JP, Fuller RA, Pascoe PP & Shaw JD (2022) Trialling camera traps to determine occupancy and breeding in burrowing seabirds. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation, 8, 180-190.

Wang X, Li X, Ren X, Jackson MV, Fuller RA, Melville DS, Amano T & Ma Z (2022) Effects of anthropogenic landscapes on population maintenance of waterbirds. Conservation Biology, 36, e13808.

Berdejo-Espinola V, Zahnow R, Suárez-Castro AF, Rhodes JR & Fuller RA (2022) Changes in green space use during a COVID-19 lockdown are associated with both individual and green space characteristics. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10, 804443.

Chowdhury S, Alam S, Labi MM, Khan N, Rokonuzzaman M, Biswas D, Tahea T, Mukul SA & Fuller RA (2022) Protected areas in South Asia: Status and prospects. Science of the Total Environment, 811, 152316.

Choi C-Y, Shi X, Shi J, Gan X, Wen C, Zhang J, Jackson MV, Fuller RA & Gibson L (2022) China’s Ecological Conservation Redline policy is a new opportunity to meet post-2020 protected area targets. Conservation Letters, 5, e12853.

Akasaka M, Kadoya T, Fujita T & Fuller RA (2022) Narrowly distributed taxa are disproportionately informative for conservation planning. Scientific Reports, 12, 2229.

Chang C-c, Cox DTC, Fan Q, Nghiem TPL, Tan CLY, Oh RRY, Lin BB, Shanahan DF, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ & Carrasco LR (2022) People’s desire to be in nature and how they experience it are partially heritable. PLoS Biology, 20, e3001500.

Chang C-c, Nghiem TPL, Fan Q, Tan CLY, Oh RRY, Lin BB, Shanahan DF, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ & Carrasco LR (2022) Genetic contribution to concern for nature and proenvironmental behaviour. Bioscience, 72, 160-165.

Gibson MR, Runge CA, Stephens PA, Fuller RA & Willis SG (2022) Where nothing stands still: Quantifying nomadism in Australian arid-zone birds. Landscape Ecology, 37, 191-208.

Morrick ZN, Lilleyman A, Fuller RA, Bush R, Coleman JT, Garnett ST, Gerasimov YN, Jessop R, Ma Z, Maglio G, Minton CDT, Syroechkovskiy E & Woodworth BK (2022) Differential population trends align with migratory connectivity in an endangered shorebird. Conservation Science and Practice, 4, e594.