
Overview
Background
I am an ecologist and the goal of my research is to understand the processes driving the rise and fall of populations of animals and plants over time.
We focus on the biology of flowing freshwater ecosystems — streams, rivers, and associated wetlands. These systems provide wonderfully challenging opportunities for combining theory, observations, and experiments to discover how nature works.
More importantly, freshwater ecosystems are, per unit area, the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet, and yet they remain underexplored, underappreciated, and under threat.
We hope our work can help to redress these issues.
You can find out more about our group here: http://hartlab-ecology.com
Availability
- Dr Simon Hart is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
Works
Search Professor Simon Hart’s works on UQ eSpace
Featured
2023
Journal Article
How does facilitation influence the outcome of species interactions?
Hart, Simon P. (2023). How does facilitation influence the outcome of species interactions?. Journal of Ecology, 111 (10), 2094-2104. doi: 10.1111/1365-2745.14189
Featured
2022
Journal Article
Phenotypic plasticity promotes species coexistence
Hess, Cyrill, Levine, Jonathan M., Turcotte, Martin M. and Hart, Simon P. (2022). Phenotypic plasticity promotes species coexistence. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 6 (9), 1256-1261. doi: 10.1038/s41559-022-01826-8
Featured
2022
Journal Article
Does deterministic coexistence theory matter in a finite world?
Schreiber, Sebastian J., Levine, Jonathan M., Godoy, Oscar, Kraft, Nathan J. B. and Hart, Simon P. (2022). Does deterministic coexistence theory matter in a finite world?. Ecology, 104 (1) e3838, 1-17. doi: 10.1002/ecy.3838
Featured
2019
Journal Article
Effects of rapid evolution on species coexistence
Hart, Simon P., Turcotte, Martin M. and Levine, Jonathan M. (2019). Effects of rapid evolution on species coexistence. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116 (6), 2112-2117. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1816298116
Featured
2018
Journal Article
Climate-smart sustainable agriculture in low-to-intermediate shade agroforests
Blaser, W. J., Oppong, J., Hart, S. P., Landolt, J., Yeboah, E. and Six, J. (2018). Climate-smart sustainable agriculture in low-to-intermediate shade agroforests. Nature Sustainability, 1 (5), 234-239. doi: 10.1038/s41893-018-0062-8
Featured
2017
Journal Article
The spatial scales of species coexistence
Hart, Simon P., Usinowicz, Jacob and Levine, Jonathan M. (2017). The spatial scales of species coexistence. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 1 (8), 1066-1073. doi: 10.1038/s41559-017-0230-7
Featured
2016
Journal Article
How variation between individuals affects species coexistence
Hart, Simon P., Schreiber, Sebastian J. and Levine, Jonathan M. (2016). How variation between individuals affects species coexistence. Ecology Letters, 19 (8), 825-838. doi: 10.1111/ele.12618
2025
Journal Article
Ecosystem changes caused by hydrological change are associated with population decline in a formerly-common grazing herbivore
Blaser-Hart, W. J., Shanungu, G. K., Edwards, P. J., Harms, J., Hart, S. P. H., Ellenbroek, G. A., van Gils, H. A. M. J., Simukonda, C. and Olde Venterink, H. (2025). Ecosystem changes caused by hydrological change are associated with population decline in a formerly-common grazing herbivore. Ecosystems, 28 (1) 14, 1. doi: 10.1007/s10021-024-00951-8
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2021 Part F)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2021 Part F). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/0e1fdd6
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Processed maps GHA 2022 point clouds)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Processed maps GHA 2022 point clouds). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/6a832c4
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Processed maps GHA 2022 High Shade all exports)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Processed maps GHA 2022 High Shade all exports). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/befec92
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Processed maps CIV 2021 all exports)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Processed maps CIV 2021 all exports). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/3442358
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images & polygons CIV Abengourou)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images & polygons CIV Abengourou). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/9301d6b
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part C)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part C). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/eb36fd7
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 High Shade Part B)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 High Shade Part B). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/6199f9b
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images & polygons CIV Aboisso)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images & polygons CIV Aboisso). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/b46b1ff
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part E)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part E). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/2418854
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part B)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part B). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/760cdba
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part F)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2022 Part F). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/c61a4b2
2025
Other Outputs
The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2021 Part C)
Hart, Wilma J. Blaser and Hart, Simon (2025). The unrealised potential of agroforestry (Raw drone images GHA 2021 Part C). The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/3f196df
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Simon Hart is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Available projects
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How does rapid evolution affect ecological dynamics era global environmental change
Our international team of ecologists and evolutionary biologists based at prestigious universities in Australia, the USA, and Canada has a fully-funded (including both salary and research funds) PhD project exploring how rapid evolution influences population dynamics in an era of global environmental change.
Understanding why population sizes of plants and animals rise and fall is a fundamental problem in ecology, and underpins our ability to predict environmental impacts, and to manage threatened, harvested and pest species. Dominant explanations for the rise and fall of species have focused on environmental impacts and species interactions but have typically excluded the ability of species to rapidly evolve to changing conditions. This project will combine theory, lab and field experiments, and molecular tools to understand when and how rapid evolution affects the dynamics of plants and animals in an era of global environmental change.
The project will focus on species in subtropical freshwater ecosystems in Southeast Queensland, Australia. These systems provide wonderfully challenging opportunities for combining theory, observations, and experiments to discover how nature works. And importantly, freshwater ecosystems are, per unit area, the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet, yet they remain under explored, underappreciated, and under threat.
Students on this project will receive world class training at the cutting edge of eco-evolutionary biology, will have the opportunity to develop strong professional networks nationally and internationally, and will be ideally placed to pursue a career in the university, government, or private sectors.
The successful candidate will join a young but experienced team of ecologists and evolutionary biologists to work on a funded Australian Research Council Discovery Project “How does rapid evolution affect the dynamics and stability of ecological communities?” The student will be based in the School of Biological Sciences at The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia and will be supervised by Dr Simon Hart and Dr Masato Yamamichi. Students will be co-advised by scientists at MIT (Assoc. Prof Serguei Saavedra), the University of British Columbia (Assist. Prof Rachel Germain), and the University of Arkansas (Prof. Adam Siepielski), and will have opportunities for international travel.
Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
Modelling population dynamics and trophic interactions in freshwater ecosystems, with platypus as a model species
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Rapid evolution and the dynamics and stability of ecological communities.
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Jan Engelstaedter, Dr Andrew Letten
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Doctor Philosophy
The effects of rapid evolution on ecological dynamics and stability in variable environments
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller
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Doctor Philosophy
Improving biodiversity outcomes in West African cocoa
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Richard Fuller, Associate Professor Matthew Luskin, Dr Wilma J. Blaser Hart
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Doctor Philosophy
The effects of rapid evolution and phenotypic plasticity on ecological dynamics in fluctuating environments
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Jan Engelstaedter, Dr Andrew Letten
Media
Enquiries
Contact Dr Simon Hart directly for media enquiries about:
- biodiversity
- climate change
- conservation
- ecology
- evolution
- freshwater
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