{"links":{"self":"http://dataportal.arc.gov.au/NCGP/API/grants/DE260101136"},"data":{"type":"grant-details","id":"DE260101136","attributes":{"code":"DE260101136","administering-organisation":"The University of New England","announcement-administering-organisation":"The University of New England","scheme-name":"Discovery Early Career Researcher Award","grant-status":"Active","funding-commencement-year":2026,"years-funded":3,"project-start-date":"2026-01-01","anticipated-end-date":"2028-12-31","grant-summary":"Revealing the role of adaptive radiation in driving early animal evolution. This project aims to determine the importance of adaptive radiation—the rapid diversification of a group into a variety of ecological niches—in driving early animal evolution. New knowledge will be generated by synthesizing large fossil and palaeoenvironmental datasets, and using a new method of calculating morphological diversity through deep time. Expected outcomes include a greater understanding of the factors driving past diversification events, including how groups recover after major extinctions. Significant benefits include a new framework for analysing biodiversity in the fossil record, and highlighting Australia’s outstanding museum collections and geological record of early life.","funding-current":460264.00,"funding-at-announcement":456549,"investigators-current":[{"title":"Dr","firstName":"James","familyName":"Holmes","roleName":"Discovery Early Career Researcher Award","roleCode":"DECRA","isFellowship":true,"orcidIdentifier":"0000-0001-8804-2149 "}],"investigators-at-announcement":[{"title":"Dr","firstName":"James","familyName":"Holmes","roleName":"Discovery Early Career Researcher Award","roleCode":"DECRA","isFellowship":true,"orcidIdentifier":"0000-0001-8804-2149 "}],"organisations-current":[{"organisationName":"The University of New England","roleName":"Administering Organisation","state":"NSW"}],"organisations-at-announcement":[{"organisationName":"The University of New England","roleName":"Administering Organisation","state":"NSW"}],"field-of-research":[{"isPrimary":true,"code":"3705","name":"Geology","type":"FOR20"},{"isPrimary":false,"code":"370506","name":"Palaeontology (Incl. Palynology)","type":"FOR20"}],"socio-economic-objective":[{"code":"280102","name":"Expanding Knowledge In the Biological Sciences","type":"SEO20"},{"code":"280107","name":"Expanding Knowledge In the Earth Sciences","type":"SEO20"}],"international-collaboration":["China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)","Sweden","Switzerland","United States of America"],"lief-register":[],"achievement-summary":null,"national-interest-test-statement":"Evolutionary radiations are explosive diversification events that have occurred repeatedly across Earth’s history, and are responsible for much of the biodiversity we see today. However, exactly how and why such events have occurred in the geological past is not well understood. This project will use the exceptional fossil record of trilobites (an extremely diverse, extinct group similar to modern crustaceans) to reveal the causes of evolutionary radiations in deep time. Data from Australian and international museum collections, and new Australian specimens collected from the Flinders Ranges, will be used to develop a new photographic database of trilobites from the Cambrian Period (c. 539–487 million years ago). This database will then be used to quantify how trilobites evolved through time using a novel method for measuring biodiversity in the fossil record. Results will provide a greater understanding of the factors driving past diversification and extinction events, and directly support the science behind the current UNESCO World Heritage nomination for the Flinders Ranges. Palaeontology is the perfect science communication vehicle, and key concepts and research outcomes will be shared through various media and via direct engagement (e.g. outreach events with the targeted museums), highlighting Australia’s outstanding museum collections and geological record of early life."}}}