The University of Western Australia
W/Prof Dale Roberts
Winthrop Professor
Contact details
| Address | School of Animal Biology The University of Western Australia (M092) 35 Stirling Highway CRAWLEY WA 6009 Australia |
|---|---|
| Phone | 6488 2224 / 6488 2251 |
| Fax | 6488 1029 |
| droberts@cyllene.uwa.edu.au | |
| Personal homepage | http://www.ceb.uwa.edu.au/our_people/dale_roberts |
Key research
- frogs, evolutionary biology, conservation biology, sexual selection, sperm competition, biogeography, speciation
Major research interests
- Amphibian conservation
- Speciation and biogeography
Qualifications
BSc PhD Adel.
Publications
Note: publications are listed starting from the most recent for the years 2005 - 2001 only.
Journal articles
Seymour, R. S., Roberts, J. D., Mitchell, N. J. & Blaylock, A. J. 2001. Influence of environmental oxygen on development and hatching of aquatic eggs of the Australian frog, Crinia georgiana. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 73, 501-507.
Craig, M. D. & Roberts, J. D. 2001. Evaluation of the impact of time of day, weather, vegetation density and bird movements on outcomes of area searches for birds in eucalypt forest in southwestern Australia. Wildlife Research 28, 33-39.
Read, K., Keogh, J. S., Scott, I. A. W., Roberts, J. D. & Doughty P. 2001. Molecular phylogeny of the Australian frog genera Crinia and Geocrinia and allied taxa (Anura: Myobatrachidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 21, 294-308.
Beaver, R. S., Dunlop, S. A., Harman, A. M., Stirling, R. V., Easter, S. S., Roberts, J. D. & Beazley, L. D. 2001. Continued neurogenesis is not a prerequisite for regeneration of a topographic retino-tectal projection. Vision Research 41, 1765-1770.
Byrne, P. G., Roberts, J. D. & Simmons, L. W. 2002. Sperm competition selects for increased testes mass in Australian frogs. Journal of Evolutionary Biology15, 347-355.
Dunlop, S.A., Tee, L.B.G., Rodger, J., Harvey, A. R., Roberts, J. D. & Beazley, L. D. 2002. Development of retinal projections follows a mammal-like sequence in a reptile, the lizard Ctenophorus ornatus. Journal of Comparative Neurology 453, 71-84.
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Call structure may affect mating success in the quacking frog Crinia georgiana (Anura: Myobatrachidae). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 53, 221-226.
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. No sexual dimorphism in the frog Crinia georgiana (Anura: Myobatrachidae): an examination of pre and post-maturational growth. Journal of Herpetology 37, 132-137.
Smith, M. J., Withers, P. C. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Reproductive energetics and behavior of an Australian myobatrachid frog Crinia georgiana. Copeia 2003, 248-254.
Smith, M. J., Roberts, J. D., Hammond, T. J. & Davis, R. A. 2003. Intra-specific variation in the advertisement call and body size relationships in mated pairs of the sunset frog Spicospina flammocaerulea (Anura: Myobatrachidae). J. Herpetology 37, 285-291.
Doughty, P. and Roberts, J. D. 2003. Plasticity in age and size at metamorphosis of Crinia georgiana tadpoles: responses to variation in food levels and deteriorating conditions during development. Australian Journal of Zoology 51, 271-284.
Byrne, P. G., Simmons L. W. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Sperm competition and the evolution of gamete morphology in frogs. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 270, 2079-2086.
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. An experimental examination of female preference patterns for components of the male advertisement call in the quacking frog (Crinia georgiana). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 53, 221-226
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Call repertoire of an Australian treefrog, Litoria adelaidensis (Anura, Hylidae). Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 86, 91-95.
Bancroft, W. J., Garkaklis, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2004. Continued expansion of the wedge-tailed shearwater Puffinus pacificus colonies on Rottnest island, Western Australia. Emu 104: 79-82.
Byrne, P. G. & Roberts, J. D. 2004. Intrasexual selection and group spawning in quacking frogs (Crinia georgiana). Behavioral Ecology 15: 872-882.
Bancroft, W Hill, D & Roberts, J D 2004. A new method for calculating volume of excavated burrows: the geomorphic impact of Wedge-tailed Shearwater burrows on Rottnest Island. Functional Ecology 18: 752-759
Dunlop, S.A., Tee, L. B.G., Stirling, R. V., Taylor, A. L., Runham, P. B., Barber, A. B., Wallace, A., Ladyman, M., Bartlett, C., Harman, A., Kuchling, G., Rodger, J., Roberts, J. D., Harvey, A. R., Beazley, L. D. 2004. Failure to restore vision after optic nerve regeneration in reptiles: interspecies variation in response to axotomy. Journal of Comparative Neurology. 478: 292-305
Paini, D. R. & Roberts J. D. 2005. Commercial honey bees (Apis mellifera) reduce the reproductive output of an Australian native bee (Hylaeus alcyoneus). Biological Conservation 123: 103-112.
Davis R. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Embryonic survival and egg number in small and large populations of the frog Heleioporus albopunctatus in Western Australia. Journal of Herpetology 39,133-138.
Craig, M. D. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. The short-term impact of timber harvesting on the jarrah forest avifauna in south-western Australia: implications for the design and analysis of logging experiments. Biological Conservation 124:177-188.
Bancroft, W. J., Garkaklis, M. J. and Roberts, J. D. 2005. Burrow building in seabird colonies: a soil forming process in island ecosystems. Pedobiologia 49: 149-165.
Bancroft, W. J., Roberts, J. D. and Garkaklis, M. J. 2005. Burrowing seabirds drive decreased diversity and structural complexity, and increased productivity in insular-vegetation communities. Australian Journal of Botany 53, 231-241.
Davis, R. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. The population genetic structure of the Western Spotted Frog, Heleioporus albopunctatus (Anura: Myobatrachidae) in a fragmented landscape in south-western Australia. Australian Journal of Zoology. 53, 167-175
Dziminski, M. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Fitness consequences of variable maternal provisioning in quacking frogs (Crinia georgiana). Journal of Evolutionary Biology. Online publication date: 25-Jul-2005, doi: 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2005.00978.x
Davis, R. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Operational sex ratio and mating behaviour of the myobatrachid frog Neobatrachus kunapalari. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 87, 97-99.
Hettyey, A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Sperm traits of the quacking frog, Crinia georgiana: within and among population variation in a species with a high risk of sperm competition. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. Published online October 1, 2005., DOI: 10.1007/s00265-005-0062-3
Papers in press
Paini, D. R., Williams, M. R. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. No short-term impact of honey bees on the fecundity of an Australian native bee. Apidologie
Book chapters
Burbidge, A. H., Rolfe, J. K., McKenzie, N. L. & Roberts, J. D. 2004. Biogeographic patterns in small ground-dwelling vertebrates of the Western Australian wheatbelt. Pp. 139 – 202, in, G. J.Keighery, S. A. Halse, M. S. Harvey & N. L. McKenzie (eds) A biodiversity survey of the Western Australian agricultural zone. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement No. 67, Western Australian Museum, Kewdale, Western Australia.
Conference papers
Bamford, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. The impact of fire on frogs and reptiles in south-western Australia. Pp. 349-361, in, Fire in ecosystems of south-west Western Australia: impacts and management. Abbott, I. & Burrows, N. (eds) Backhuys Publishers: Leiden, The Netherlands.
Other
Burbidge, A. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2002. Sunset Frog Recovery Plan. Wildlife Management Program No. 35, Department of Conservation and Land Management, Perth (ISSN 0816-9713).
Journal articles
Seymour, R. S., Roberts, J. D., Mitchell, N. J. & Blaylock, A. J. 2001. Influence of environmental oxygen on development and hatching of aquatic eggs of the Australian frog, Crinia georgiana. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 73, 501-507.
Craig, M. D. & Roberts, J. D. 2001. Evaluation of the impact of time of day, weather, vegetation density and bird movements on outcomes of area searches for birds in eucalypt forest in southwestern Australia. Wildlife Research 28, 33-39.
Read, K., Keogh, J. S., Scott, I. A. W., Roberts, J. D. & Doughty P. 2001. Molecular phylogeny of the Australian frog genera Crinia and Geocrinia and allied taxa (Anura: Myobatrachidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 21, 294-308.
Beaver, R. S., Dunlop, S. A., Harman, A. M., Stirling, R. V., Easter, S. S., Roberts, J. D. & Beazley, L. D. 2001. Continued neurogenesis is not a prerequisite for regeneration of a topographic retino-tectal projection. Vision Research 41, 1765-1770.
Byrne, P. G., Roberts, J. D. & Simmons, L. W. 2002. Sperm competition selects for increased testes mass in Australian frogs. Journal of Evolutionary Biology15, 347-355.
Dunlop, S.A., Tee, L.B.G., Rodger, J., Harvey, A. R., Roberts, J. D. & Beazley, L. D. 2002. Development of retinal projections follows a mammal-like sequence in a reptile, the lizard Ctenophorus ornatus. Journal of Comparative Neurology 453, 71-84.
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Call structure may affect mating success in the quacking frog Crinia georgiana (Anura: Myobatrachidae). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 53, 221-226.
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. No sexual dimorphism in the frog Crinia georgiana (Anura: Myobatrachidae): an examination of pre and post-maturational growth. Journal of Herpetology 37, 132-137.
Smith, M. J., Withers, P. C. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Reproductive energetics and behavior of an Australian myobatrachid frog Crinia georgiana. Copeia 2003, 248-254.
Smith, M. J., Roberts, J. D., Hammond, T. J. & Davis, R. A. 2003. Intra-specific variation in the advertisement call and body size relationships in mated pairs of the sunset frog Spicospina flammocaerulea (Anura: Myobatrachidae). J. Herpetology 37, 285-291.
Doughty, P. and Roberts, J. D. 2003. Plasticity in age and size at metamorphosis of Crinia georgiana tadpoles: responses to variation in food levels and deteriorating conditions during development. Australian Journal of Zoology 51, 271-284.
Byrne, P. G., Simmons L. W. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Sperm competition and the evolution of gamete morphology in frogs. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 270, 2079-2086.
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. An experimental examination of female preference patterns for components of the male advertisement call in the quacking frog (Crinia georgiana). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 53, 221-226
Smith, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. Call repertoire of an Australian treefrog, Litoria adelaidensis (Anura, Hylidae). Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 86, 91-95.
Bancroft, W. J., Garkaklis, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2004. Continued expansion of the wedge-tailed shearwater Puffinus pacificus colonies on Rottnest island, Western Australia. Emu 104: 79-82.
Byrne, P. G. & Roberts, J. D. 2004. Intrasexual selection and group spawning in quacking frogs (Crinia georgiana). Behavioral Ecology 15: 872-882.
Bancroft, W Hill, D & Roberts, J D 2004. A new method for calculating volume of excavated burrows: the geomorphic impact of Wedge-tailed Shearwater burrows on Rottnest Island. Functional Ecology 18: 752-759
Dunlop, S.A., Tee, L. B.G., Stirling, R. V., Taylor, A. L., Runham, P. B., Barber, A. B., Wallace, A., Ladyman, M., Bartlett, C., Harman, A., Kuchling, G., Rodger, J., Roberts, J. D., Harvey, A. R., Beazley, L. D. 2004. Failure to restore vision after optic nerve regeneration in reptiles: interspecies variation in response to axotomy. Journal of Comparative Neurology. 478: 292-305
Paini, D. R. & Roberts J. D. 2005. Commercial honey bees (Apis mellifera) reduce the reproductive output of an Australian native bee (Hylaeus alcyoneus). Biological Conservation 123: 103-112.
Davis R. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Embryonic survival and egg number in small and large populations of the frog Heleioporus albopunctatus in Western Australia. Journal of Herpetology 39,133-138.
Craig, M. D. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. The short-term impact of timber harvesting on the jarrah forest avifauna in south-western Australia: implications for the design and analysis of logging experiments. Biological Conservation 124:177-188.
Bancroft, W. J., Garkaklis, M. J. and Roberts, J. D. 2005. Burrow building in seabird colonies: a soil forming process in island ecosystems. Pedobiologia 49: 149-165.
Bancroft, W. J., Roberts, J. D. and Garkaklis, M. J. 2005. Burrowing seabirds drive decreased diversity and structural complexity, and increased productivity in insular-vegetation communities. Australian Journal of Botany 53, 231-241.
Davis, R. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. The population genetic structure of the Western Spotted Frog, Heleioporus albopunctatus (Anura: Myobatrachidae) in a fragmented landscape in south-western Australia. Australian Journal of Zoology. 53, 167-175
Dziminski, M. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Fitness consequences of variable maternal provisioning in quacking frogs (Crinia georgiana). Journal of Evolutionary Biology. Online publication date: 25-Jul-2005, doi: 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2005.00978.x
Davis, R. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Operational sex ratio and mating behaviour of the myobatrachid frog Neobatrachus kunapalari. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 87, 97-99.
Hettyey, A. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. Sperm traits of the quacking frog, Crinia georgiana: within and among population variation in a species with a high risk of sperm competition. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. Published online October 1, 2005., DOI: 10.1007/s00265-005-0062-3
Papers in press
Paini, D. R., Williams, M. R. & Roberts, J. D. 2005. No short-term impact of honey bees on the fecundity of an Australian native bee. Apidologie
Book chapters
Burbidge, A. H., Rolfe, J. K., McKenzie, N. L. & Roberts, J. D. 2004. Biogeographic patterns in small ground-dwelling vertebrates of the Western Australian wheatbelt. Pp. 139 – 202, in, G. J.Keighery, S. A. Halse, M. S. Harvey & N. L. McKenzie (eds) A biodiversity survey of the Western Australian agricultural zone. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement No. 67, Western Australian Museum, Kewdale, Western Australia.
Conference papers
Bamford, M. J. & Roberts, J. D. 2003. The impact of fire on frogs and reptiles in south-western Australia. Pp. 349-361, in, Fire in ecosystems of south-west Western Australia: impacts and management. Abbott, I. & Burrows, N. (eds) Backhuys Publishers: Leiden, The Netherlands.
Other
Burbidge, A. A. & Roberts, J. D. 2002. Sunset Frog Recovery Plan. Wildlife Management Program No. 35, Department of Conservation and Land Management, Perth (ISSN 0816-9713).
Roles, responsibilities and expertise
fire ecology, forest management, frog natural history
Future research
Phylogeny of Australian myobatrachid frogs (ARC funded), sperm competition in frogs, call structure evolution in frogs and, I dabble in the behavioural outcomes from regneration studies in neurobiology -particularly in the visual system
Funding received
ARC Discovery Grant $255,000 (2003 - 2005) with Dr S Keogh, ANU.
ARC Discovery grant$690000 (2005-2009. Sperm competition and the evolution of ejaculates (with L W Simmons, UWA)
WA State Government:$453,884 (2005-7)Perth Zoo Frog Breeding and Research (with Perth Zoo)
ARC Discovery grant$690000 (2005-2009. Sperm competition and the evolution of ejaculates (with L W Simmons, UWA)
WA State Government:$453,884 (2005-7)Perth Zoo Frog Breeding and Research (with Perth Zoo)
Industrial relevance
Strong links with Conservation and Land
Management, WA, Frogs Australia Network
Management, WA, Frogs Australia Network
Languages
English
Memberships
Australian Society of Herpetologists, Herpetologist's League, American Society of Ichthyologists & Herpetologists, Society for the Study of Evolution, American Society of Naturalists, Society for Study of Animal Behaviour
Honours and awards
Honorary Associate in Terrestrial Zoology, West Australian Museum
Previous positions
at UWA since 1978!
Patents
Nil
Teaching
Coordinate units in Behavioural Ecology 304; Introduction to Ecology 250
Current external positions
Member, Scientific Advisory Panel for WWF frogs! Program, Editorial Board, Biochemical Systematics and Ecology, Editorial Board, Animal Behaviour (2004-2006)
Current projects
see above but I am interested broadly in conservation and management of West Australian environments and their fauna
Research profile
