Wild Macadamia Conservation
This project seeks to investigate which fungal groups are associated with the roots of M. tetraphylla. Mollie will use eDNA techniques to look at the M. tetraphylla root mycobiome – that is, the fungal community that lives within plant roots. This includes mycorrhizal fungi that can grow around and inside roots and even into the …
This project brings together specialists in entomology, macadamia pollination, bee behaviour, neuromorphic systems and machine learning from Western Sydney University to use neuromorphic machine learning to search satellite imagery for undiscovered wild populations of M. tetraphylla, the species that has lost the most habitat through clearing. Selected sites will then be monitored for pest and …
Dr Albert Wong is working with a team at the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation investigating the potential to grow macadamias through tissue culture. This WMC grant supports a project aiming to develop a tissue culture protocol for Macadamia jansenii, because so far, every individual macadamia tested requires a specific combination of growing …
In 2018 we reported on trials at the Royal Sydney Botanic Gardens to dry and store macadamia seeds and retain their viability (see below). There were exciting initial results, with some seeds germinating after storage in liquid nitrogen for a month, but subsequent trials showed that germination and survival was not consistent, and that that …
Cultivated macadamia trees have significantly less genetic diversity than wild trees. This means wild trees may have a greater capacity to respond to changing conditions, new diseases, human needs, and climatic change. Learning more about the genetic composition of wild macadamias gives us the chance to conserve and protect this important native species. There might …
MCT successfully applied for a $15,000 Tech Voucher Grant in collaboration with the Southern Cross University (SCU). The NSW Department of Industry Tech Voucher program is designed to increase access by Small and Medium Enterprises to NSW research and development (R&D) organisations and promote collaboration. Through this grant, the NSW Government is supporting the development …
So much macadamia habitat has been cleared in and around Brisbane, and yet old trees survive in backyards, acreage blocks, farmland and creek and bushland reserves. Some of these trees may be the last individuals of lost populations. We are calling on Brisbane residents to help us find the old trees – can you think …
It’s official! MCT has received funding through the Australian Government Threatened Species Recovery Fund to create four ex-situ plantings of the endangered Macadamia jansenii. Assistant Minister for the Environment, the Honourable Melissa Price, announced funding for eight species, saying that the new projects would help to improve the trajectories of some of Australia’s most threatened …
