I chose to specialize in environmental geochemistry, particularly in stable isotope biogeochemistry, because it gives me the flexibility to investigate a wide range of topics that can contribute to our understanding of environmental change. My research incorporates both terrestrial (from the humid tropics to drylands) and aquatic systems (both freshwater and oceanic), and I have utilized a suite of stable isotope ratios on a wide array of materials including water, carbonate, phosphate, and organic matter. My current foci include developing records of environmental change from cave guano and lacustrine sediments, investigating pyrogenic carbon and organic geochemical archives using hydrogen pyrolysis, and continuing to investigate animal behaviour using stable isotope compositions of their tissues and biogenic minerals such as bones, shells and fish otoliths.

 

 

 

Teaching

• EA2404: Earth's Climate: Past, Present and Future (Level 2; CNS)
• EA5404: Earth's Climate: Past, Present and Future (Level 5; CNS)

Interests

Research

• Quaternary environments of tropical and semi-arid regions
• High-resolution archives of abrupt and seasonal environmental change
• Stable isotope tracers of animal behavior and energetics
• Bioenergetics in fish ecology
• Global Change and sustainability
• Method development for the acquisition of environmental archives

Experience

• 2006 to 2009 - Research Fellow, University of St Andrews (St Andrews, Scotland)
• 2005 - Sea Grant Scholar, University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon, SK, Canada)

Research Disciplines

• Physical geography and environmental geoscience (3709)
• Geochemistry (3703)
• Ecology (3103)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Expanding knowledge (2801)
• Understanding climate change (1905)

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Bird M, Haig J, Ulm S and Wurster C (2022) A carbon and nitrogen isotope perspective on ancient human diet in the British Isles. Journal of Archaeological Science, 137.
• Li T, Wurster C, Haig J, Zhou Y, Zwart C, Ren J, Comley R, Munksgaard N, Gadd P and Bird M (2022) Environmental change inferred from multiple proxies from an 18 cal ka BP sediment record, Lake Barrine, NE Australia. Quaternary Science Reviews, 294.
• McCarthy R, Hamdi R, Erni , Bird M and Wurster C (2022) Tropical environmental change in North Sumatra at the Last Glacial Maximum: Evidence from the stable isotope composition of cave guano. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 602.
• Orr T, Wurster C, Roberts E, Singleton R, Stevens N and O'Connor P (2022) Paleoatmospheric CO2 oscillations through a cool middle/Late Cretaceous recorded from pedogenic carbonates in Africa. Cretaceous Research, 135.
• Bird M, Crabtree S, Haig J, Ulm S and Wurster C (2021) A global carbon and nitrogen isotope perspective on modern and ancient human diet. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 118 (19).
• Orr T, Roberts E, Wurster C, Mtelela C, Stevens N and O'Connor P (2021) Paleoclimate and paleoenvironment reconstruction of paleosols spanning the Lower to Upper Cretaceous from the Rukwa Rift Basin, Tanzania. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 577.
• Orr T, Wurster C, Levchenko V, Ascough P and Bird M (2021) Improved pretreatment method for the isolation and decontamination of pyrogenic carbon for radiocarbon dating using hydrogen pyrolysis. Quaternary Geochronology, 61.
• Rowe C, Wurster C, Zwart C, Brand M, Hutley L, Levchenko V and Bird M (2021) Vegetation over the last glacial maximum at Girraween Lagoon, monsoonal northern Australia. Quaternary Research, 102. pp. 39-52
• Wurster C, Rowe C, Zwart C, Sachse D, Levchenko V and Bird M (2021) Indigenous impacts on north Australian savanna fire regimes over the Holocene. Scientific Reports, 11 (1).
• Bird M, Haig J, Hadeen X, Rivera Araya M, Wurster C and Zwart C (2020) Stable isotope proxy records in tropical terrestrial environments. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 538.
• Cantwell-Jones A, Wurster C, Zwart C and Bird M (2020) Can ancient insect exoskeleton ?¹³C values be used to infer past vegetation types? Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 555.
• Haig J, Ascough P, Wurster C and Bird M (2020) A rapid throughput technique to isolate pyrogenic carbon by hydrogen pyrolysis for stable isotope and radiocarbon analysis. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 34 (10).

More

ResearchOnline@JCU stores 80+ research outputs authored by Dr Chris Wurster from 1999 onwards.

Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.

Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Primary or Secondary Advisor.

These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.

Current

• Paleoclimate Reconstruction of Northern Australia: What is Natural? Interactions between Humans, Maga Fauna and Climate (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Late quaternary environmental change in Northeastern Australia (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Understanding the Genesis and Patterns of Cave Fill across the Cradle of Humankind, South Africa (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• A reconstruction of the Holocene fire and environmental history from Kinrara Swamp North Queensland (Masters , Secondary Advisor)

Completed

• Climate change in the tropics: drought effects on the phenology and eco-physiology of rainforest tree species (2022, PhD , Secondary Advisor)

These are the most recent metadata records associated with this researcher. To see a detailed description of all dataset records, visit Research Data Australia.

• Twaddle, R. (2016) Temperature data from Mirdidingki Creek, Bentinck Island, June 2013 - July 2014. James Cook University
• Bird, M. (2012) Algal biochar: effects and applications data. James Cook University
• Bird, M. (2012) Forest contraction in north equatorial Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Sarawak, Palawan, Borneo and the Philippines) during the Last Glacial Period from stable carbon isotope data. James Cook University

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.