Biography
Educated initially in archaeology and geology I have come to focus on the Holocene palaeoecology of invertebrates and human impacts on Indo-Pacific ecosystems. I am especially interested in how we can use the palaeo-archive of island histories to reconstruct prehuman island diversity and the changes that took place when humans colonised islands across the planet's oceans.
Additionally, I have a interest in Australian invertebrate ecology and biogeography, especially in relation to Australia's largely endemic beetle fauna.
Read more on Nicholas's profileResearch interests
At present I am studying the recent fossil record (the last several thousand years) to characterise the nature and extent of human impacts on the ecosystems of Indo-Pacific islands.
My research focusses and the role of human colonistation in driving species extinctions and invasions and changes in the nature of the ecosystems more generally. I'm interested in how the fossil record can contribute to island ecology, biogeography and evolution by providing novel insights that are only available through the prism of the fossil record.
Affiliations
Centre for Integrated Ecology (Member)
Associate in Science (Bishop Museum, Honolulu)
Teaching interests
Landscape Evolution and Physical Geography; Invertebrate Ecology and Diversity
Knowledge areas
Quaternary Palaeoecology; Island Biogeography; Indo-Pacific and Australia Beetles (Coleoptera); Biological Invasions; Invertebrate Extinctions
Projects
Australian Research Council DECRA (DE130101453 - 2013-2016): Developing predictions of extinction risk for tropical arthropods in the face of global environmental change.
Australian Academy of Science (German-Australian Mobility Call for Collaboration in Science and Technology (2013-2014): Predicting global change impacts on Australian aquatic biodiversity.
US National Science Foundation (as funded collaborator) (2014-2016): CNH: Socio-Ecosystem Dynamics of Natural-Human Networks on Model Islands.
Publications
Z Liu, N Porch, A Ślipiński
(2023), Vol. 5301, pp. 292-300, Zootaxa, Auckland, N.Z., C1
Rainforest litter invertebrates decimated by high severity burns during Australia's gigafires
H Gibb, J Grubb, D Black, N Porch, O Decker, M McGeoch, D Deane, N Murphy
(2023), pp. 1-16, Austral Ecology: a journal of ecology in the Southern Hemisphere, London, Eng., C1-1
J Lawrence, R Leschen, M Elgueta, N Porch, A Šlipiński
(2023), Vol. 73, pp. 261-292, Annales Zoologici, Warsaw, Poland, C1
Melinda Allen, Tara Lewis, Nick Porch
(2022), Vol. 17, pp. 1-21, PLOS ONE, San Francisco, Calif., C1
An illustrated checklist of the insects of Tasmania. Part 1, Coleoptera beetles
S Grove, L Forster, N Porch
(2021), Hobart, Tas., A1
Options for shorebird-exclusion devices for pitfall traps on sandy shores
M Evans-Clay, N Porch, G Maguire, M Weston
(2021), Vol. 48, pp. 175-180, Wildlife Research, C1
M Evans-Clay, N Porch, G Maguire, M Weston
(2021), Vol. 67, pp. 398-411, Environmental Management, United States, C1
J Kolibáč, M Bocakova, J Liebherr, T Ramage, N Porch
(2021), Vol. 191, pp. 846-882, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, C1
Indigenous plants promote insect biodiversity in urban greenspaces
L Mata, A Andersen, A Morán-Ordóñez, A Hahs, A Backstrom, C Ives, D Bickel, D Duncan, E Palma, F Thomas, K Cranney, K Walker, I Shears, L Semeraro, M Malipatil, M Moir, M Plein, N Porch, P Vesk, T Smith, Y Lynch
(2021), Vol. 31, Ecological Applications, United States, C1
Systematic revision of the trans-bassian moriomorphine genus theprisa moore (Coleoptera, carabidae)
J Liebherr, N Porch, M Shaw, B Sinclair, D Maddison
(2021), pp. 339-373, ZooKeys, Sofia, Bulgaria, C1
D Maddison, N Porch
(2021), Vol. 2021, pp. 153-196, ZooKeys, Bulgaria, C1
M Rossini, F Vaz-De-mello, O Montreuil, N Porch, S Tarasov
(2021), Vol. 1061, pp. 75-86, ZooKeys, Bulgaria, C1
S Weedon, N Porch, M Symonds
(2020), Vol. 59, pp. 156-166, Austral Entomology, C1
Five new Pycnomerus Erichson (Coleoptera: Zopheridae: Pycnomerini) from Raivavae, French Polynesia
N Porch, T Smith, K Greig
(2020), Vol. 4718, pp. 239-250, Zootaxa, New Zealand, C1
R Cooke, A Rendall, M Weston, N Porch, N Bradsworth, J White
(2020), Vol. 22, Global Ecology and Conservation, C1
N Porch
(2020), Vol. 4868, pp. 135-141, Zootaxa, Auckland, N.Z., C1
D Maddison, K Kanda, O Boyd, A Faille, N Porch, T Erwin, S Roig-Juñent
(2019), Vol. 132, pp. 151-176, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, United States, C1
Early tropical crop production in marginal subtropical and temperate Polynesia
Matthew Prebble, Atholl Anderson, Paul Augustinus, Joshua Emmitt, Stewart Fallon, Louise Furey, Simon Holdaway, Alex Jorgensen, Thegn Ladefoged, Peter Matthews, Jean-Yves Meyer, Rebecca Phillipps, Rod Wallace, Nicholas Porch
(2019), Vol. 116, pp. 8824-8833, Proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the United States of America, Washington, D.C., C1
New Pycnomerus Erichson (Coleoptera: Zopheridae: Pycnomerini) from Rimatara, French Polynesia
N Porch, T Smith
(2017), Vol. 4237, pp. 154-166, Zootaxa, New Zealand, C1
T Schlacher, B Hutton, B Gilby, N Porch, G Maguire, B Maslo, R Connolly, A Olds, M Weston
(2017), Vol. 191, pp. 28-38, Estuarine, coastal and shelf science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Pliocene reversal of late Neogene aridification
J Sniderman, J Woodhead, J Hellstrom, G Jordan, R Drysdale, J Tyler, N Porch
(2016), Vol. 113, pp. 1999-2004, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, United States, C1
E Toussaint, L Hendrich, H Escalona, N Porch, M Balke
(2016), Vol. 41, pp. 650-657, Systematic entomology, Chichester, Eng., C1
Abrupt late Pleistocene ecological and climate change on Tahiti (French Polynesia)
M Prebble, R Whitau, J Meyer, L Sibley-Punnett, S Fallon, N Porch
(2016), Vol. 43, pp. 2438-2453, Journal of biogeography, Chichester, Eng., C1
The early shorebird will catch fewer invertebrates on trampled sandy beaches
T Schlacher, L Carracher, N Porch, R Connolly, A Olds, B Gilby, K Ekanayake, B Maslo, M Weston
(2016), Vol. 11, PLoS ONE, United States, C1
Unveiling the diversification dynamics of Australasian predaceous diving beetles in the Cenozoic
E Toussaint, F Condamine, O Hawlitschek, C Watts, N Porch, L Hendrich, M Balke
(2015), Vol. 64, pp. 3-24, Systematic biology, London, Eng., C1
J Kahn, C Nickelsen, J Stevenson, N Porch, E Dotte-Sarout, C Christensen, L May, J Athens, P Kirch
(2015), Vol. 25, pp. 333-347, The holocene: a major interdisciplinary journal focusing on recent environmental change, Thousand Oaks, Calif., C1
N Sweaney, D Driscoll, D Lindenmayer, N Porch
(2015), Vol. 186, pp. 1-11, Biological Conservation, C1
Stratigraphy and chronology of karst features on rodrigues island, southwestern Indian ocean
D Burney, J Hume, G Middleton, L Steel, L Burney, N Porch
(2015), Vol. 77, pp. 37-51, Journal of cave and karst studies, Huntsville, Ala., C1
Reassembling a lost lowland carabid beetle assemblage (Coleoptera) from Kauai, Hawaiian Islands
J Liebherr, N Porch
(2015), Vol. 29, pp. 191-213, Invertebrate systematics, Melbourne, Vic., C1
K Rijsdijk, J Hume, P De Louw, H Meijer, A Janoo, E De Boer, L Steel, J De Vos, L Van Der Sluis, H Hooghiemstra, F Florens, C Baider, T Vernimmen, P Baas, A Van Heteren, V Rupear, G Beebeejaun, A Grihault, J Van Der Plicht, M Besselink, J Lubeek, M Jansen, S Kluiving, H Hollund, B Shapiro, M Collins, M Buckley, R Jayasena, N Porch, R Floore, F Bunnik, A Biedlingmaier, J Leavitt, G Monfette, A Kimelblatt, A Randall, P Floore, L Claessens
(2015), Vol. 35, pp. 3-20, Journal of vertebrate paleontology, Abingdon, Eng., C1
N Porch
(2013), pp. 191-199, Encyclopedia of quaternary science, Edinburgh, Scotland, B1
D Craig, N Porch
(2013), Vol. 3641, pp. 448-462, Zootaxa, Auckland, N. Z., C1
M Byrne, D Steane, L Joseph, D Yeates, G Jordan, D Crayn, K Aplin, D Cantrill, L Cook, M Crisp, J Keogh, J Melville, C Moritz, N Porch, J Sniderman, P Sunnucks, P Weston
(2011), Vol. 38, pp. 1635-1656, Journal of biogeography, Oxford, U. K., C1
O Hawlitschek, N Porch, L Hendrich, M Balke
(2011), Vol. 6, pp. 1-14, PLoS ONE, San Francisco, Ca., C1
K Rijsdijk, J Zinke, P de Louw, J Hume, H van der Plicht, H Hooghiemstra, H Meijer, H Vonhof, N Porch, F Florens, C Baider, B van Geel, J Brinkkemper, T Vernimmen, A Janoo
(2011), Vol. 21, pp. 1-16, Holocene, London, U. K., C1
N Porch, A Kershaw
(2010), pp. 395-404, Altered ecologies : fire, climate and human influence on terrestrial landscapes, Canberra, A.C.T., B1-1
N Porch
(2010), Vol. 29, pp. 633-647, Quaternary science reviews, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
N Porch
(2009), Vol. 36, pp. 29-32, Australian entomologist, Brisbane, Qld., C1-1
N Porch, G Jordan, D Price, R Barnes, M Macphail, M Pemberton
(2009), Vol. 28, pp. 3197-3210, Quaternary science reviews, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
K Rijsdijk, J Hume, F Bunnik, F Florens, C Baider, B Shapiro, J van der Plicht, A Janoo, O Griffiths, L van den Hoek Ostende, H Cremer, T Vernimmen, P De Louw, A Bholah, S Saumtally, N Porch, J Haile, M Buckley, M Collins, E Gittenberger
(2009), Vol. 28, pp. 14-24, Quaternary science reviews, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
J Sniderman, N Porch, A Kershaw
(2009), Vol. 28, pp. 3185-3196, Quaternary science reviews, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
Terrestrial invertebrates in landscape archaeology
N Porch
(2008), pp. 457-467, Handbook of landscape archaeology, Walnut Creek, Calif., B1-1
Birth of a biome : insights into the assembly and maintenance of the Australian arid zone biota
M Byrne, D Yeates, L Joseph, M Kearney, J Bowler, M Williams, S Cooper, S Donnellan, J Keogh, R Leys, J Melville, D Murphy, N Porch, K Wyrwoll
(2008), Vol. 17, pp. 4398-4417, Molecular ecology, Oxford, England, C1-1
First record of Stenus Latreille (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Steninae) from Tasmania, Australia
N Porch
(2008), Vol. 62, pp. 62-62, Coleopterists bulletin, Washington, D.C., C1-1
A Kershaw, G McKenzie, N Porch, R Roberts, J Brown, J Heijnis, M Orr, G Jacobsen, P Newall
(2007), Vol. 22, pp. 481-500, Journal of quaternary science, Oxford, England, C1-1
The OZPACS database : a resource for understanding recent impacts on Australian ecosystems
K Fitzsimmons, P Gell, S Bickford, T Barrows, S Mooney, T Denham, S Gale, S Garcia, S Haberle, G Hancock, J Harrison, T Lewis, N Porch
(2007), Vol. 24, pp. 2-6, Quaternary Australasia, Sydney, N. S. W., C1-1
Origins of agriculture at Kuk Swamp in the highlands of New Guinea
T Denham, S Haberle, C Lentfer, R Fullagar, J Field, M Therin, N Porch, B Winsborough
(2003), Vol. 301, pp. 189-193, Science, Washington, D.C., C1-1
N Stern, N Porch, I McDougall
(2002), Vol. 17, pp. 349-392, Geoarchaeology, New York, N. Y., C1-1
Quaternary beetles : a review and issues for Australian studies
N Porch, S Elias
(2000), Vol. 39, pp. 1-9, Australian journal of entomology, Carlton, Vic., C1-1
Tasmania : archaeological and palaeo-ecological perspectives
N Porch, J Allen
(1995), Vol. 69, pp. 714-732, Antiquity, Gloucester, England, C1-1
Cyclical patterns in the pleistocene human occupation of Southwest Tasmania
S Holdaway, N Porch
(1995), Vol. 30, pp. 74-82, Archaeology in oceania, Sydney, N. S. W., C1-1
Funded Projects at Deakin
Australian Competitive Grants
Developing predictions of extinction risk for tropical arthropods in the face of global environmental change
Dr Nicholas Porch
ARC DECRA - Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
- 2015: $130,955
- 2014: $137,005
- 2013: $130,566
Refuges for narrow range endemic invertebrates, butterflies and jewel beetles
Prof Don Driscoll, Dr Nicholas Porch, Dr Chloe Sato
Wildlife and Habitat Bushfire Recovery Program
- 2021: $192,791
- 2020: $192,791
Tasmania's Forgotten Riparian Ground Beetles
Dr Nicholas Porch
Tasmanian Government - Plomley Foundation Grant
- 2022: $4,070
Conservation biogeography of the endangered invertebrate fauna of the SE Australian montane archipelago
Dr Nicholas Porch
Hermon Slade Foundation CAT1-A2
- 2023: $15,000
Other Public Sector Funding
Assessing the impacts to shorebirds of an emerging threat in critical habitat ¿ horses on exposed sandy shores
A/Prof Mike Weston, Miss Madison Jamie Evans-Clay, Dr Nicholas Porch
Balnarring Foreshore and Parks Reserve Committee of Management
- 2019: $3,100
Industry and Other Funding
Predicting Global Change impacts on Australian Aquatic Biodiversity
Dr Nicholas Porch
Australia Academy of Science
- 2014: $11,000
Supervisions
Yang Zhang
Thesis entitled: Permian-Triassic brachiopod fauna and the end-Permian mass extinction
Doctor of Philosophy (Life & Env), School of Life and Environmental Sciences