top of page
FrogsVic audience.jpg

Coming Up...

52898390_233524764125823_906193409462291

Dr Rebecca Webb, University of Melbourne​​​

 

"Know your enemy: Uncovering how the amphibian chytrid fungus interacts with its hosts and environment"

​

4th June 2025
Elgin Inn Hawthorn

From 6:30 pm - Talk starts 7:30 pm​​​

​

How does the amphibian chytrid fungus deal with stress and how we can use this to our advantage? This talk will explore cool new lab techniques to understand the mechanisms by which chytrid tolerates stress encountered from its host and environment, and how this information could help us develop new conservation strategies.


Bec Webb loves all things frogs but can usually be found pipetting in the lab rather than catching frogs in the rain. She completed her PhD at James Cook University in 2022 and is now a Post Doc with the One Health Research Group at the University of Melbourne.


All are welcome in the audience -
no RSVP/registration necessary​

Join us upstairs at The Elgin from 6:30 pm for dinner and drinks (available for purchase).

Talk starts at 7:30 pm at The Elgin Inn 75 Burwood Road, Hawthorn VIC 3122

   

​​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

Sincere thanks to our 2024 speakers:

 

Sam Wallace

Jessica Keem, Kevin Newman and David De Angelis

Jeff Hughes

Matt Clancy, Justine Holmes, Sue Bendel, Dan Guinto

John Gould

Ellen Cottingham and Stephen Frankenberg

Nice photo bec and frog - bec webb.jpg
52807407_569871086812552_557301884595994

Sam Wallace

University of Newcastle

@WallacXFrogging | @wallace_s_

Samantha Wallace is a PhD candidate at The University of Newcastle. Sam completed her Bachelor of Environmental Science (Honours) at Deakin University, where she scampered after frogs across agricultural landscapes. With Newcastle as her new home, Sam’s PhD investigates all things Littlejohn’s and Watson’s Tree Frog-gy (Litoria littlejohni and Litoria watsoni).


Uncovering the ecology of threatened Heath Frogs

Perhaps the greatest challenge to conservation science today is the endeavour to preserve species from ever-accelerating rates of extinction. Such rapid and sustained species declines place considerable pressure on the development effective conservation initiatives. Successful conservation strategies must be founded upon a well-informed understanding of species’ ecology. Unfortunately, ecological information is not readily available for many cryptic anurans. This paucity of information is particularly apparent for Littlejohn’s Tree Frog (Litoria littlejohni) and Watson’s Tree Frog (Litoria watsoni). The ecology and breeding biology of heath frogs remains relatively unknown, largely due to their cryptic nature and apparent rarity. To combat significant ecological knowledge gaps and investigate breeding habitat selection, we undertook surveys for L. littlejohni and L. watsoni across 31 sites in southern NSW. Overall, L. littlejohni and L. watsoni exhibited slightly different relationships with breeding habitat features, although the presence of fish had a strong negative impact on both species.


Laura is a research fellow at the Melbourne veterinary school at the University of Melbourne. She is a conservation biologist and disease ecologist primarily focusing on how frogs are affected by chytridiomycosis. she presents:


"The Effects of Climate Change on Frog Development, Physiology and Immunity"


Amphibians are declining worldwide, and the impacts of climate change are largely unknown. For animals that require freshwater aquatic habitat, such as frogs as tadpoles, climate change and its influence on water availability poses a huge risk.


Laura will give an overview of her recent work investigating how climate change (through pond drying and larval density) impact larval development and frogs later in life. Understanding how climate change influences frog development, survival, physiology and immunity can help us predict the direct impacts of climate change on frogs.



Louise is an ecologist with the Arthur Rylah Institute’s threatened fauna team, working with forest-dependent species including arboreal mammals and frogs. Prior to her time at ARI, Louise worked with conservation NGOs in the UK, Madagascar and Cambodia, and is a Gippsland girl at heart! Louise presents:


"Updates from the field – Litoria watsoni" ​


In search of Watson’s tree frog in a post-fire landscape: insights from genetics, chytrid prevalence and acoustic monitoring.




Previous Events

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Frog Curious?

Join our mailing list for updates 

Frogs Victoria Society

@frogsvic

ABN 13 452 559 357

© 2025 Frogs Victoria Society

bottom of page