Dr Jacinta Humphrey

Helping our feathered neighbours thrive - ICON Science Spring is in the air, Guardian Australia’s ‘Bird of the Year’ poll is now open, and the Aussie Bird Count is just around the corner – what better time to stop and think about how you can support nativ...

Looking for tips on how to care for wildlife at home?! The ICON team has you covered 😜

Check out the latest blogs on the ICON website here:
icon-science.org/how-to-turn-...
icon-science.org/helping-our-...

Birds and cities don’t always mix well. But small changes in our behaviour can make a difference Spring is a great time of year for noticing neighbourhood birds. Here are some simple ideas for helping the birds in Australian back yards, cities and towns

Are you looking to attract native birds to your garden this spring? 🦜 🏡 Here's some top tips from @drkyliesoanes.bsky.social and yours truly!

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

#BirdsInBackyards #UrbanNature #WildlifeGardening #CitizenScience

An illustration of an urban space with lots of greenery. Text overlay says: How can we invite wildlife back into our cities? Explore solutions in the new artwork When Wildlife Moves In.

What if we changed urban spaces to invite wildlife back into our cities rather than forcing them out? When Wildlife Moves In, a new work at the National Gallery of Victoria, explores ways our homes can be designed to help wildlife live among us, benefiting human health 🧪

whenwildlifemovesin.com

From frog saunas to butterfly puddles: 8 ways to turn your homes into a wildlife refuge Urban sprawl has forced native animals and humans to live close together. Here are eight ways to make your home a refuge for wildlife.

From frog saunas to butterfly puddles: 8 ways to turn your homes into a wildlife refuge:
theconversation.com/from-frog-sa...

A fantastic summary article from my colleagues at @icon-science.bsky.social - Bethany Kiss, Mark Jacques and Sarah Bekessy. Well done team! 🦋🌱🪺🐈🐸

NGV Exhibition: When wildlife moves in - ICON Science Native animals can make for excellent neighbours – blue-banded bees pollinate our vegetable gardens; microbats eat up to 1200 mosquitoes per night; powerful owls keep rodents at bay. But could we go o...

New ICON blog post: icon-science.org/ngv-exhibiti...

These garden beds with indigenous groundcovers and understorey plantings are looking fantastic! I'd love to see more of these at libraries, community halls, recreation centres, shopping precincts and train stations across the municipality 🌱 🌼 🐝 🪻 🦋

#UrbanGreening #IndigenousPlants #UrbanHabitat

A photo of a large garden bed in front of a public swimming pool in Carnegie, Melbourne, Australia. The garden bed is sloped away from the building and is planted with small indigenous groundcovers and understorey plants. Some of the plants have small round yellow flowers. The plants are surrounded by mulch and set against a bright blue sky.

This week, I finally visited the recently renovated Carnegie Memorial Swimming Pool and I have to say - I like what you've done with the place, Glen Eira City Council 😍

#UrbanGreening #IndigenousPlants #UrbanHabitat

Massive flock of critically endangered swift parrots seen in one spot A gathering of close to the total estimated population of swift parrots excites ecologists, but they warn it is no party for the critically endangered species.

"We don't have to go obliterating habitat every time we want to… establish a new residential estate for people".

With 600-700 critically endangered Swift Parrots turning up on the outskirts of Bendigo, it's time to rethink urban development. 🦜

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07...

So next time you spot someone wearing high-vis in your street, don’t assume there’s roadworks… they might just be an ecologist! 🌳🔍🦜

Shout out to Lydia Daniel for remembering where we saw the Google Street View car and for sharing this photo. 😄

#UrbanEcology #Fieldwork

A photo of Dr Jacinta Humphrey standing on a nature strip under a Melaleuca tree on a suburban street. Jacinta is wearing light blue jeans, sneakers, a dark grey jumper and a high-vis orange vest. She is holding a clipboard and looking up at a tree out of frame, while shielding her eyes against the sun. A teal-coloured backpack rests on the ground behind her. It's a sunny day with blue skies. Jacinta's face been blurred by Google Street View.

Ever wondered what #UrbanEcology #Fieldwork looks like? Here's a perfect example!

This photo from Google Street View was taken during Lydia Daniel’s Honours fieldwork – we were surveying large street trees for birds, which involved a lot of time standing on nature strips and staring up at trees.

A massive congratulations to ICON Science Lab Head, Prof. @sbekessy.bsky.social, who has been successful in securing an ARC Industry Laureate Fellowship for 2025!! Congratulations Sarah!! 👏🏼🎉🥂

Read more about Sarah's project here: www.arc.gov.au/2025-industr...

A photo of a large high-rise building with a ladder of green up one side.

A photo of a green building facade in Brisbane. One section hosts a solid wall of plants, while the adjacent sections have plants spilling out over balconies.

A selfie of Dr Jacinta Humphrey in the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens. She is smiling at the camera and is surrounded by lush, green palms.

Not all of it is indigenous, but research shows these plants likely make a big impact by cooling the city, boosting wellbeing, and supporting urban wildlife. I would love to see more of this around Australia! 🌆

High-rise photo by: @drdunnart.bsky.social

#ICCB2025 #UrbanGreening #Brisbane

A photo of Fish Lane - a famous laneway in Brisbane's cultural and arts district which is lined with potted palms and small patches of green.

A lush, green laneway in Brisbane, lined with palms and ferns.

A photo of the famous Grand Arbour at South Bank, Brisbane - a kilometre long walkway covered in purple bougainvillea.

Everywhere you looked there were lush laneways, green building facades, and of course the iconic Grand Arbour at South Bank. 🪴

#ICCB2025 #UrbanGreening #Brisbane

A photo of a green building facade in Brisbane. There are plants cascading down over the edge of a balcony in front of a cafe.

An avenue of large fig trees planted along the Brisbane River foreshore at South Bank, Brisbane.

A photo of the famous Grand Arbour at South Bank, Brisbane - a kilometre long walkway covered in purple bougainvillea.

A seating area at South Bank, Brisbane with hanging planter boxes and dense garden beds nearby.

Last month, I had the opportunity to attend the International Congress for Conservation Biology (ICCB) in Meanjin/Brisbane. It was great event, but the thing that really struck me was Brisbane's urban greening! 🌿

#ICCB2025 #UrbanGreening #Brisbane

Jacinta shares the stage with Nerd Nite boss, Dr Wade Kelly, and responds to audience questions.

Jacinta shares the stage with Nerd Nite boss, Dr Wade Kelly, and responds to audience questions.

A photo of the two Nerd Nite bosses, Dr Ebony Monson and Dr Wade Kelly, with the three speakers from the evening: Dr Kira Hughes, Dr Jacinta Humphrey and Dr Veronique Paris. Behind them is a Nerd Nite artwork image of a bright pink tram.

Massive thanks to Nerd Nite bosses Dr Ebony Monson, Dr Haylo Roberts and Dr Wade Kelly! Congrats again to my fellow speakers, Dr Véronique Paris and Dr Kira Hughes – you ladies were both brilliant! And shout out to Jacob Steel, Ebony, Wade and my sister-in-law, Nat Schultz, for the photos. ☺️

Dr Jacinta Humphrey stands off the right-hand-side of the stage, beside a large projection of her slides. On the screen is a circular photo of a leafy, green city with a blue arrow pointing towards a greyscale photo of roads, houses, shops and concrete as far as the eye can see. These images indicate the current transition we are seeing in Melbourne.

Jacinta introduces the villain in the story: the noisy miner, a native honeyeater that can be very territorial and aggressive.

Dr Jacinta Humphrey stands off the right-hand-side of the stage, beside a large projection of her slides. On the screen are a series of circular photos of noisy miners attacking different animals, including domestic dogs and other birds.

If you’ve never been to a Nerd Nite show, you have to go. And if you happen to have an interesting research story, or just a nerdy fascination you’d like to share, consider giving a talk yourself. 🎤

A photo of Dr Jacinta Humphrey presenting at Nerd Nite Melbourne. Jacinta is a young white woman with dark hair tied up in a bun. She is wearing jeans and a navy blue jumper with a fairy-wren on it, and is holding a microphone.

A photo of Jacinta's title slide "The new bully on the block". The background of the slide shows a close-up photo of a noisy miner against a green backdrop.

A photo taken behind Jacinta on stage, looking out at the crowd of people.

Science communication has taken me to some very cool places. Recently, I had the amazing opportunity to share some of my research at Nerd Nite Melbourne! I never would have thought I’d be gracing this stage, but what a FANTASTIC experience!

If you can’t wait for the next ICCB - We are thrilled to announce that the next SCB Oceania conference will be held in Nov 2026 together with @newzealandecology.bsky.social in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa NZ!

#NZES_SCBO2026 #ICCB2025

confer.eventsair.com/2026-nzes-sc...

A photo of Dr Patt Finnerty presenting his research on 'urban rewilding' at the International Congress for Conservation Biology 2025 in Meanjin/Brisbane. Patt is a young white man and is standing on a small stage behind a lectern.

Great to see Dr Patt Finnerty presenting his research on 'urban rewilding' at #ICCB2025. Patt emphasised that we are losing biodiversity from urban areas but often species reintroductions occur outside of cities. We need more fauna translocations in the suburbs! 🏡

First ever poster #presentation at #ICCB2025! Fat-tailed #dunnarts of the Victorian #grasslands are #threatened with #extinction
Sheep farming landscapes ✅️ Cropped landscapes ❌️
#climatechange is forcing Victorian farmers toward cropping = less #habitat for #native #fauna

When designing new suburbs or retrofitting existing urban areas, I therefore recommend:
1) Positioning high density housing away from areas of high biodiversity value,
2) Increasing canopy tree cover across suburbs, and
3) Protecting and restoring native vegetation patches.

Absolutely! My PhD identified three key influences on native bird communities at the landscape-scale:
1) Housing cover (-),
2) Canopy tree cover (+), and
3) Intact patches of native vegetation (+).

A photo of eight white people at a conference poster session in a large hall. Each person is wearing a blue and white name badge on a long white string, and is smiling at the camera.

The ICON Science Research Group, including both current and recent alumni, was well represented at the #ICCB2025 poster session last night! You can catch our lab head, Prof. Sarah Bekessy (@sbekessy.bsky.social), speaking in 'The future of designing with urban wildlife' session at 3.15pm in M4.

Ricky Archer, the first Indigenous Director of National Parks at Parks Australia, addresses the audience at ICCB 2025.

#ICCB2025 has officially started in Meanjin/Brisbane! This morning we are fortunate to hear from Ricky Archer, Director of National Parks at Parks Australia, and A/Prof Binbin Li from Duke Kunshan University.

ICON Science will be here all week so stay tuned for updates!

Are you a fan of urban birds? Keen to know how we can better support native birds in our cities? Come along to my speed talk tomorrow to find out!

* Mon 16 June at 10.30am *
"Sustainable Land and Water Use" in Room M2

#ICCB2025 #Conference #Research #SciComm #Conservation #UrbanEcology #Birds

We're currently putting together a final report for the local council and our funding bodies. After that, the plan is to write it up as a peer-reviewed journal article. So hopefully we are in a position to share more later this year!

The maintenance team has also collected data on the presence of bird nests, eggs, mammal scat and left overs (e.g., bivalve shells, crab carapaces).

Thank you! I conducted ~3 yrs of fauna surveys which consisted of a fortnightly or monthly 20-min point count from the shore with binoculars. We have also had an iNatutalist project running for citizen science observations.

A photo of Jacinta Humphrey looking to the left of frame, through a pair of binoculars. Jacinta is wearing a grey waterproof jacket and has long, dark brown hair. Behind her you can see some gum trees with green foliage. The text at the top of the image reads: "Nerd Nite Melbourne - Jacinta Humphrey - The new bully on the block". The bottom of the image reads: "Tickets $17 - 11th June - Howler Brunswick".

A close of photo of Jacinta Humphrey. She is standing towards the right of the image and is wearing a black t-shirt and a pair of kookaburra earrings. The text of the left hand side of the image reads: "About Jacinta - Jacinta was one of those kids that grew up OBSESSED with animals. You know, the ones who watched The Lion King 600 times and tried to communicate telepathically with dogs - that kind of obsessed. She may have moved on from canine telepathy, but Jacinta still loves animals. Today, she works as an Urban Ecologist and spends her time thinking about how to make our cities and suburbs better for native wildlife."

Calling all Melbourne folks: Tickets are still available for Nerd Nite Melbourne on Wed 11th June at Howler in Brunswick! Come along to hear me rant about noisy miners - the bully bird taking over our backyards. Grab your tickets here: moshtix.com.au/v2/event/ner...

Nerd Nites next show is on the 11th June!!

Come to hear fabulous talks from @kiraetsa.bsky.social, @jacintahumphrey.bsky.social and Sex with Lex!!

Tickets only $17 and are available here 🤓: moshtix.com.au/v2/event/ner...