James Cook University's campuses are in the tropics near the centre of the Great Barrier Reef and alongside the rainforests of the Australian wet tropics World Heritage area. We conduct research in tropical systems. We are well equipped with specialised facilities for research and have access to many interesting sites as well as our own field stations
Our research concentrates on projects studying the lives and ecology of tropical animals from the rainforest, the inland arid zone, freshwater, and marine environments. Research emphasis is on whole animals, e.g. their ecology, evolutionary ecology, evolution, behavioural ecology, physiological ecology, and studies of the ecosystems in which they are found. We study almost kinds of the terrestrial and freshwater animal groups.
We take full advantage of our locality, by the middle of the Great Barrier Reef, adjacent to tropical rainforests and savanna-lands, to work with the exciting animals and plants of these unique habitats ... like:
| Reef corals | Rain-forest trees |
| Free-living corals | Squid, octopus and other tropical marine invertebrates |
| Coral reef fish | Mangroves |
| Sea-grasses | Gliders, possums, tree kangaroos |
| Rain-forest insects and things | Tropical frogs |
On a per capita basis our staff and postgraduate students are among the highest performers in Australia in obtaining competitive grants funds and in doing exciting research. As a small, close-knit institution students at all levels can participate in this adventure.
| Departments | Location | Teaching performance | employment opportunities | Research activities |