My research

I am a palaeogeneticist interested in understanding past biodiversity change in Australia during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene. I use ancient DNA to investigate mammalian responses to climate change throughtime and how faunal distributions have changed since European arrival in 1788. I am currently developing the SahulTraits database which covers 40 ecologically-relevant traits across 2,880 terrestrial tetrapods present in Sahul from present day to the Late Pleistocene.

My interests

• Conservation Genetics

• Phylogenetics

• Ancient DNA

• Australian Megafauna

Selected publications

• Mudge, C., Dallwitz, R., Llamas, B., & Austin, J. J. (2020). Using ancient DNA analysis and radiocarbon dating to determine the provenance of an unusual whaling artifact. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 8, 505233. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2020.505233

• Mudge, C., Gray, L. J., & Austin, J. J. (2022). Using mitochondrial DNA to identify the provenance of 19th century Kākāpō skins held in Australia’s oldest natural history collection, the Macleay. Emu-Austral Ornithology, 122(1), 16-26. https://doi.org/10.1080/01584197.2021.1998782 

• Mitchell, K. J., Bover, P., Salis, A. T., Mudge, C., Heiniger, H., Thompson, M., ... & Meachen, J. A. (2023). Evidence for Pleistocene gene flow through the ice-free corridor from extinct horses and camels from Natural Trap Cave, Wyoming. Quaternary International, 647, 71 80.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2021.11.017.

Fun facts

My interest in ancient DNA began in year 11 (2013) after watching a documentary about thylacine de-extinction and writing an essay on the topic.