Lecturer
Overview
I am a teaching focussed academic, and I specialise in the teaching of ecology. I come to this field from a background in botany and the ecology of animal-plant interactions. Getting students enthused about the "hidden stories" of plants is thus a big part of what I do! In terms of the dynamics of teaching, I am particularly interested in how to maximise the value of field trips in the teaching of ecology; how to best encourage students to develop their skills in literature research and writing; and how to make the traditional lecture format more engaging to students through the striking use of narrative, juxtaposition and imagery. An important component of my work for the school is the development and teaching of international programmes in Australian Terrestrial Ecology, one such example being the course I teach for the University of California.
For my PhD research I studied the ecology of cycads, an ancient group of plants with a fossil record that pre-dates the dinosaurs. I worked on the animal-plant relationships of living cycads, such as their host-specific pollination relationships with certain beetles, their seed dispersal relationships with vertebrate animals and their defences against herbivory. Because of their great antiquity, cycads may provide insights into how animal-plant relationships functioned and evolved before the first appearance of the flowering plants.
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
- Bachelor (Honours) of Science (Advanced), The University of Queensland
- Bachelor, The University of Queensland
Publications
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Hall, John A. and Walter, Gimme H. (2018). Pollination of the Australian cycad Cycas ophiolitica (Cycadaceae): the limited role of wind pollination in a cycad with beetle pollinator mutualists, and its ecological significance. Journal of Tropical Ecology, 34 (02), 121-134. doi: 10.1017/S0266467418000111
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Hall, J. A. and Walter, G. H. (2014). Relative seed and fruit toxicity of the Australian cycads Macrozamia miquelii and Cycas ophiolitica: further evidence for a megafaunal seed dispersal syndrome in cycads, and its possible antiquity. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 40 (8), 860-868. doi: 10.1007/s10886-014-0490-5
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Journal Article: Seed Dispersal of the Australian Cycad Macrozamia Miquelii (Zamiaceae): Are Cycads Megafauna-Dispersed "grove Forming" Plants?
Hall, John A. and Walter, Gimme H. (2013). Seed Dispersal of the Australian Cycad Macrozamia Miquelii (Zamiaceae): Are Cycads Megafauna-Dispersed "grove Forming" Plants?. American Journal of Botany, 100 (6), 1127-1136. doi: 10.3732/ajb.1200115
Supervision
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Effects of translocation on the survival, behaviour, and ecology of wild snakes.
Doctor Philosophy
Publications
Journal Article
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Hall, John A. and Walter, Gimme H. (2018). Pollination of the Australian cycad Cycas ophiolitica (Cycadaceae): the limited role of wind pollination in a cycad with beetle pollinator mutualists, and its ecological significance. Journal of Tropical Ecology, 34 (02), 121-134. doi: 10.1017/S0266467418000111
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Hall, J. A. and Walter, G. H. (2014). Relative seed and fruit toxicity of the Australian cycads Macrozamia miquelii and Cycas ophiolitica: further evidence for a megafaunal seed dispersal syndrome in cycads, and its possible antiquity. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 40 (8), 860-868. doi: 10.1007/s10886-014-0490-5
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Hall, John A. and Walter, Gimme H. (2013). Seed Dispersal of the Australian Cycad Macrozamia Miquelii (Zamiaceae): Are Cycads Megafauna-Dispersed "grove Forming" Plants?. American Journal of Botany, 100 (6), 1127-1136. doi: 10.3732/ajb.1200115
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Hall, John A. and Walter, Gimme H. (2011). Does pollen aerodynamics correlate with pollination vector? Pollen settling velocity as a test for wind versus insect pollination among cycads (Gymnospermae: Cycadaceae: Zamiaceae). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 104 (1), 75-92. doi: 10.1111/j.10958312.2011.01695.x
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Pollination ecology of the Australian cycad Lepidozamia peroffskyana (Zamiaceae)
Hall, J. A., Walter, G. H., Bergstrom, D. M. and Machin, P. (2004). Pollination ecology of the Australian cycad Lepidozamia peroffskyana (Zamiaceae). Australian Journal of Botany, 52 (3), 333-343. doi: 10.1071/BT03159
Other Outputs
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John Hall (2011). The Ecology of Cycads: Living Representatives of an Ancient Plant Lineage and their Interactions with Animals.. PhD Thesis, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland.
PhD and MPhil Supervision
Current Supervision
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Effects of translocation on the survival, behaviour, and ecology of wild snakes.
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
