Faculty of Science, Engineering and Built Environment

School of Life and Environmental Sciences

Dr Mathew Berg
  Phone   +61 3 522 71365
Email   mathew.berg@deakin.edu.au
Position   Research Fellow in Avian Sensory Ecology
Campus   Geelong
Research grouping   Ecophysiology, Sensory Ecology and Behaviour
Centre for Integrative Ecology

Research interests

  1. Biogeography and speciation, especially in parrots
  2. Sensory biology, mate choice, and the evolution of animal signals
  3. Ecology and evolution of wildlife disease


Career

BSc (Hons) - University of Melbourne (1994-1998)
PhD - University of Groningen , The Netherlands (1999-2004)
Academy of Natural Sciences Philadelphia (USA) - Jessup Fellow (2004)
University of Bristol (UK) - Postdoctoral Research Associate (2004-2007)
Deakin University - Research Fellow (2008-present)

Key publications

Ribot, R. F. H., Buchanan, K. L., Joseph, L., Endler, J. A., Bennett, A. T. D & , Berg, M. L. (2012) Learned vocal variation is associated with abrupt genetic change in a parrot species complex. PLoS One 7, e50484

Berg, M. L. & Bennett, A. T. D. (2010) The evolution of plumage coloration in parrots: a review. Emu 110, 10-20

Knott, B., Berg, M. L., Morgan, E. R., Buchanan, K. L., Bowmaker, J. K. & Bennett, A. T. D. (2010) Avian retinal oil droplets: dietary manipulation of colour vision? Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 277, 953-962

Ribot, R. F. H., Berg, M. L., Buchanan, K. L., Komdeur, J., Joseph, L. & Bennett, A. T. D. (2009) Does the ring species concept predict vocal variation in the crimson rosella, Platycercus elegans, complex? Animal Behaviour 77, 581-593

Joseph, L., Dolman, G., Donnellan, S., Saint, K., Berg, M. L. & Bennett, A. T. D. (2008) Where and when does a ring start and end? Testing the ring species hypothesis in a species complex of Australian parrots.g output in the Australian reed warbler. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 275, 2431-2440

View entire list of audited publications

Professional activities

Member: European Society for Evolutionary Biology, Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour, Australian Society for the Study of Animal Behaviour, Applied Vision Association, Birds Australia
Reviewer for several publications (e.g. Emu, Journal of Zoology, Oecologia, PLoS ONE, Proc. R. Soc. B, Oxford University Press)

 

PhD students

Student nameThesis title
Justin Eastwood (2010-2013)Ecology and evolution of beak and feather disease virus in rosellas Milla Mihailova (2011-2014)Olfactory signalling in the crimson rosella species complex Eliza Larson (2012-2015)Nest site selection, heat stress and breeding success in cavity nesting parrots  

 

Honours students

Student nameThesis title Emmanuel Schubert (2009)Environmental effects on coloration in the crimson rosella complex Justin Eastwood (2010)Spatio-temporal ecology of beak and feather disease virus in crimson rosellas Eliza Larson (2011-12)Temperature variation, stress and breeding success in crimson rosellas Pritika Desai (2012)Feather corticosterone: a long term indicator of stress in the crimson rosella complex Bircan Dogan (2012-13)Haldane's Rule and seasonal sex ratios in crimson rosellas Erika Roper (2012-13)Vocalisations in the crimson rosella complex Sarah Beebe (2013-14)Habitat variation and vocalisations in crimson rosellas Sarah Micallef (2013-14)Behavioural lateralisation in crimson rosellas Jade Russell (2013-14)Chlamydophila psittaci infection in a wild parrots  

 

Teaching areas

Sensory neurobiology and behaviour


Deakin University acknowledges the traditional land owners of present campus sites.

8th February 2013