Post-doctoral fellow
Conservation biology, population genetics, impacts of landscape variability (eg habitat fragmentation) on population biology, marine ecology and genetics
Phone: +61 2 6125 9288
Fax: + 61 (0)2 6125 0746
E-mail: sam.banks@anu.edu.au

Sam Banks completed undergraduate degrees in arts and science at Monash University. His honours and postgraduate work were in conservation genetics and the population biology of marsupials. Post-doctoral research at Macquarie University from 2005 to 2007 focused on marine invertebrate ecology and genetics. He commenced a post-doctoral fellowship in the Fenner School in 2007.

Professional Activities

I am interested in conservation and population biology and have used molecular genetics and field ecological approaches in my research. My genetics experience began during my honours and in subsequent work developing non-invasive methods for genetically identifying individual animals and applying these methods to conservation programs for endangered species like the northern hairy-nosed wombat. I went on to complete a PhD focusing on the impacts of habitat fragmentation on the social behaviour and population biology of small marsupial carnivores (Antechinus). I then took a sea change and worked on the genetics of marine invertebrate populations, and how this is influenced by physical oceanic and geographic processes. Since moving to ANU in early 2007 I have been working on a long term study of possums, including how demography, genetic structure and life history strategies are influenced by variability in habitat and climate.

Selected Publications

Banks, S.C. et al. 2007. Oceanic variability and coastal topography shape local genetic structure in a long-dispersing marine invertebrate. Ecology, In Press.

Beckman, J. et al. 2007. Phylogeography and environmental correlates of a cap on reproduction: teat number in a small marsupial, Antechinus agilis. Molecular Ecology 16, 1069-1083.

Banks, S.C. et al. 2005. The effects of habitat fragmentation on the social kin structure and mating system of the agile antechinus, Antechinus agilis. Molecular Ecology, 14, 1789-1801.

Banks, S.C. et al. 2005. The effects of habitat fragmentation via forestry plantation establishment on spatial genotypic structure in the small marsupial carnivore, Antechinus agilis. Molecular Ecology, 14, 1667-1680.

Banks, S.C. et al. 2003. Demographic monitoring of an entire species by genetic analysis of non-invasively collected material. Animal Conservation 6: 101-107.