Australia & New Zealand
EDUCATION
B.S. in Zoology, minor in Environmental Planning and Environmental Law,
University of Auckland, 1987. (NZ)
M.S. in Resource Management,
University of Canterbury, 1990. (NZ)
Ph.D. in Animal Ecology,
Lincoln University, 1998. (NZ)
Post Graduate Diploma in Museum Studies,
Massey University, 1996. (NZ)
Certificate IV in Workplace Training and Assessment,
NQ Institute of TAFE, 2000. (Queensland, Australia)
TEACHING
- Natural Resource Management – Directed Research
- Rainforest Management Studies
- Techniques for Rainforest Research
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
- Adjunct Researcher, School of Environment, Griffith University, Brisbane
- Reviewer for Emu Austral Ornithology, New Zealand Journal of Zoology
- Member Ecological Society of Australia 2001 - present
- Member Birdlife Australia 1996 –present
- Member Trees for the Evelyn and Atherton Tablelands 1997-present
- Member Tree Kangaroo and Mammal Group 1998 - present
FACULTY PROFILE
I grew up in New Zealand where I undertook my university education. There I worked in a variety of roles; as a Scientific Observer on foreign fishing vessels, for the Department of Conservation where I first became involved in ecological restoration, and as an assistant natural history curator. Since moving to Australia in 1997 I have lived and worked in Queensland’s Wet Tropics. Initially I worked for the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service and the first Wet Tropics NRM Board, roles that gave me a broad introduction to the region. In 2001 I joined SFS at the Centre for Rainforest Studies where I taught across subject areas and later served as Centre Director from 2006 - 2008. Since 2008 I have worked on the Marine and Tropical Science Research Facility (MTSRF) project “Restoring Tropical Forest Landscapes” through Griffith University and undertaken small consultancy projects in ecological research, monitoring and education. I am excited to be back at SFS mentoring students in their Directed Research projects in the spring semester and experiencing first-hand how the summer programs I initiated back in 2007 have developed.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
My main research interests are in the fields of restoration and threatened species management, both from an ecological and sociological perspective. My current work focuses on the ecological values of restoration, particularly for birds, and how landscape context influences re-colonisation of rainforest restoration sites by fauna. I am also examining the impacts of tropical cyclones, and the potential impacts of climate change, on an endemic frugivore, the Tooth-billed bowerbird.
RESEARCH PROJECTS
The research conducted at SFS field centers is designed to answer key questions related to critical and related social and environmental problems and to provide our hosts with detailed and accurate information for decision making and action. Faculty and student research projects are linked to the Center’s five year research plan, which defines an overarching research directive.
Prospective SFS students, please note that the range of projects offered by faculty will vary from semester to semester. These should be discussed with the faculty after your arrival at the centre.
Current SFS projects
In Spring 2012 I will be mentoring students in two DR projects. These are:
Ecosystem research in the Robson Creek 25ha Supersite.
The Robson Creek 25ha Supersite, situated within Wet Tropics upland rainforest, is part of the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), a set of dedicated ecosystem observation sites within Australia. Working in collaboration with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Tropical Forest Research Centre (TFRC), students will have the opportunity to pursue research in community ecology; topics such as factors determining community composition, spatial distribution and dispersal limitations.
Making Connections - Monitoring rainforest restoration.
Making Connections is a major revegetation project helping to restore connectivity between islands of rainforest on private land and World Heritage rainforest in the high-altitude areas of the Southern Atherton Tablelands. The project, overseen by the Wet Tropics Management Authority (WTMA), involves collaboration between private landholders, scientists, community groups and government agencies to restore rainforest corridors and provide refuges for species threatened by climate change. Students will investigate the progress of early plantings within the project and have the opportunity to address such topics as species survival and growth and effectiveness of maintenance.
Previous SFS projects
Bird Communities of Acacia-dominated Rainforest Regrowth
Secondary forests can play an important role in rainforest conservation as they can assist in restoring ecosystems affected by habitat loss and fragmentation and may provide a cost-effective alternative to large-scale planting. In this study conducted at the SFS Centre for Rainforest Studies, we examined the bird communities of Acacia-regrowth forest and compared them to the bird communities of contiguous cleared land and uncleared simple notophyll vine forest. We have found that although Acacia-regrowth forest as young as 17-25 years provides habitat for a range of rainforest-associated species, even at 50+ years this forest is seemingly not satisfactory for some more specialised rainforest species.
Outputs
Recovery of bird communities in Acacia-dominated secondary rainforest
Amanda Freeman. Spoken paper presented at the Birds Australia Congress, Townsville, 13-15 August 2010.
Habitat Requirements of the Tooth-billed Bowerbird: Can This Wet Tropics Endemic Withstand Climate Change?
The overall aim of the project is to examine aspects of Tooth-billed Bowerbird habitat use that will lead to improved understanding of specific habitat requirements and potential degree of resilience to climate change. I am also examining the impact of a tropical cyclone on the diet and courtship behavior of this species at the SFS Centre for Rainforest Studies site.
Outputs
Freeman, A. N. D. & Vinson, M. F#. 2008. The effect of tropical Cyclone Larry on tooth-billed bowerbird Scenopoeetes dentirostris court attendance and decoration. Austral Ecology 33: 570-572.
Vinson, M. F#. & Freeman, A. N. D. 2006. Tooth-billed Bowerbirds establish a lek in Acacia regrowth forest. Sunbird 36: 54-59.
Taking the heat: how resilient will Tooth-billed Bowerbirds be to climate change?
Freeman, A. N. D. Poster paper presented at the Australasian Ornithological Conference, Blenheim, New Zealand, 6-10 December 2005.
Other recent research
Since 2008 I have worked on the Marine and Tropical Science Research Facility (MTSRF) project “Restoring Tropical Forest Landscapes” through Griffith University. My work has focused on the value of restoration, particularly for birds, and how landscape context influences re-colonisation of rainforest restoration sites.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS (last updated January 2012)
Peer-reviewed journals (published, and in review: # denotes graduate student / intern, *denotes undergraduate )
Catterall, C. P., Freeman, A. N. D., Kanowski, J. & Freebody, K. (in press). Can active restoration of tropical rainforest rescue biodiversity? A case with bird community indicators. Biological Conservation.
Freeman, A.N.D., Freeman, A. B. & Burchill, S. 2009. Bird use of revegetated sites along a creek connecting rainforest remnants. Emu 109: 331-338.
Freeman, A.B.+ & Freeman, A.N.D. 2009. Habitat use in a large rainforest python (Morelia kinghorni) in the Wet Tropics of North Queensland, Australia. Herpetological Conservation and Biology 4: 252-260.
Freeman, A. N. D. & Vinson, M. F.# 2008. The effect of tropical Cyclone Larry on tooth-billed bowerbird Scenopoeetes dentirostris court attendance and decoration. Austral Ecology 33: 570-572.
Freeman, A. N. D.; Pias, K.* & Vinson, M. F.# 2008. The impact of Tropical Cyclone Larry on bird communities in fragments of the endangered rainforest Type 5b. Austral Ecology 33: 532-540.
Craig, M. D.; Freeman, A. N. D. & Seabrook, L.# S. 2007. Does improving the accuracy of soil mapping by increasing sampling intensity assist with the identification of pre-European vegetation communities? Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland 113: 3-7.
Freeman, A. N. D. & Seabrook, L. S.# 2006. Increase in Riparian Vegetation along Peterson Creek, North Queensland 1938-2004. Ecological Management & Restoration 7: 63-65.
Vinson, M. F.# & Freeman, A. N. D. 2006. Tooth-billed Bowerbirds establish a lek in Acacia regrowth forest. Sunbird 36: 54-59.
Freeman, A. N. D. 2004. Constraints to community groups monitoring plants and animals in rainforest revegetation sites on the Atherton Tablelands of far north Queensland. Ecological Management & Restoration 5: 199-204.
Edited publications, including technical publications and theses
Freeman, A. N. D. 2012. Beach Stone-curlew. In Queensland’s Threatened Animals. (Eds LK Curtis, AJ Dennis, KR McDonald, PM Kyne and SJS Debus) pp. xx–xx. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne. (In press.)
Freeman, A. N. D. & Freeman, A. B. 2011. Purple-crowned Fairy-wrens in Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) National Park 2010/2011. Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service.
Harrington, G., Freeman, A. N. D., Murphy, S., Venables, B. and Edwards, C. 2011. Carpentarian Grasswren Survey Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) National Park 15-30 June 2011. Birds Australia North Queensland, Sept 2011. www.birdsaustralianq.org/pdfs/boodjamulla_2011_final_report.pdf
Kanowski, J., Catterall, C. P., Freebody, K., Freeman, A. N. D. and Harrison, D. A. 2010. Monitoring Revegetation Projects in Rainforest Landscapes. Toolkit Version 3. Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Facility. www.griffith.edu.au/environment-planning-architecture/environmental-futures-centre/publications/materials-for-environmental-managers/monitoring-revegetation-projects-in-rainforest-landscapes-toolkit-version-3
Presentations (^ invited, # intern, *undergraduate)
How does landscape context influence the re-colonisation of rainforest restoration sites by birds?
Freeman, A. N. D.^, Catterall, C. P., Freebody, K., Kanowski, J. Spoken paper presented at the International Symposium on Rehabilitation of Tropical Rainforest Ecosystems, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 24-25 October 2011.
How do the landscape context of revegetation and the ecological attributes of bird species affect re-colonisation of rainforest revegetation sites? A case study in the Australian Wet Tropics uplands.
Freeman, A. N. D., Catterall, C. P., Freebody, K., Kanowski, J. Spoken paper presented at the Australasian Ornithological Conference, JCU Cairns, 29 September - 1 October 2011.
Recovery of Bird Communities in Acacia-dominated Secondary Rainforest.
Amanda Freeman. Spoken paper presented at the Birds Australia Congress, Townsville, 13-15 August 2010.
The impact of Tropical Cyclone Larry on bird communities in fragments of the endangered rainforest Type 5b.
Amanda N. D. Freeman, Kyle Pias*, Magdalena F. Vinson#. Spoken paper presented at the Cyclone Science Seminar, JCU Cairns, 27-28 September 2007.
Bird recolonisation in a restored wildlife corridor.
Freeman, A. N. D. Spoken paper presented at the Australasian Ornithological Conference, Blenheim, New Zealand, 6-10 December 2005.
Taking the heat: how resilient will Tooth-billed Bowerbirds be to climate change?
Freeman, A. N. D. Poster paper presented at the Australasian Ornithological Conference, Blenheim, New Zealand, 6-10 December 2005.
Skink Community Composition in a Rainforest Restoration Site Freeman, A. N. D. Spoken paper presented at the 2005 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, Tampa, Florida, July 2005.
Predators on the prowl: How does Australia’s largest snake survive in a fragmented landscape?
Freeman, A. B.+, Freeman, A. N. D., and Krockenberger, A. Poster presented at the 2005 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, Tampa, Florida, July 2005.
Constraints to monitoring and evaluation of restoration projects by community organisations
A. N. D. Freeman. Spoken paper at Society for Ecological Restoration Annual Conference, Austin, Texas, November 2003.
