THE JOYCE W. VICKERY SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH FUND
The Linnean Society of New South Wales invites applications for grants from the Joyce W. Vickery Research Fund. These grants are intended to support worthy research in those fields of the biological and earth sciences that fall within the range of interests of the Society, especially natural history research within Australia.
In awarding grants, the Council of the Society will assess:
Individual grants will not normally exceed $2500 for members and $1500 for non-members. The Society envisages that grants will normally be used for items such as equipment, travel within Australasia, or laboratory, photographic and other consumables. Because of a ruling by the Taxation Commisioner that the fund only be used for research, we cannot support requests for a stipend, nor can we fund attendance at conferences or thesis preparation.
Grantees must make a written report, detailing progress and justifying expenditure, to the Society within 12 months of receiving the grant. Any publication arising from studies supported by the Joyce W. Vickery Scientific Research Fund must acknowledge that support. Type material generated by such studies should be lodged in a state or national museum or herbarium or other Australian institution approved by the Council of the Linnean Society.
Applications must be typed on the Fund's application form and may be accompanied by no more than three (3) pages of additional information, plus references and a list of the applicant's relevant publications over the previous five years. The form is obtainable from this wesite, or it can be sent to you by contacting the Secretary as detailed below.
The Society's decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into once successful applicants have been announced.
Advice to Applicants: Unsuccessful applicants usually fail beacuse of inadequate explanation of what hypothesis is being tested, or why the project is important, and how it would add to knowledge in that particular discipline. The proposed budget must also be fully justified. Students are strongly urged to seek help from their supervisor, or someone versed in in the art of writing grant applications, if they are doing this for the first time. It would also be wise to have the application reviewed before submission.
Deadline: The deadline for applications will be 1st March each year; however, in exceptional circumstances, applications for genuine emergency support may be considered at any time.
Appeal For Donations
The Council of the Linnean Society of NSW is keen to increase this form of direct financial support to the scientific community - to professionals, students and amateur researchers alike. The only way it can do this is by increasing the capital of the JOYCE W. VICKERY SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH FUND and thus augmenting the interest used for direct support of scientific research.
The Linnean Society seeks donations from individuals, institutions or organisations sympathetic to the purposes for which the fund is currently being used. All such donations, which are tax-deductible, will be gratefully received by the Linnean Society of New South Wales and used to support original scientific research in Australasia. Give yourself a tax break and help a struggling research student, as most of the funds go to students. Please make cheques payable to the "Linnean Society of NSW". Click here to download a donation form.
Dr. Joyce Winifred Vickery M.B.E. (1908-1979)
Joyce Vickery, one of Australia's leading botanists and a pioneer Australian woman scientist, spent most of her working career (before and after retirement) at the National Herbarium of New South Wales, Royal Botanic Gardens. Joyce Vickery (appointed Assistant Botanist in 1936) actively supported the new Chief Botanist, R.H. Anderson, in raising the standards of one of Australia's oldest and most important botanical centres.
Her appointment broke new ground in several ways. Joyce Vickery was the first woman to be appointed as a scientific professional officer in the NSW Public Service and she flatly refused to accept the lower starting salary for a female officer. She held out for, and gained, a more appropriate higher salary based on qualifications rather than sex!
Dr. Vickery was an ardent early supporter of the Nature Conservation cause in N.S.W. and was closely involved in the campaign to set up the then Kosciusko State Park, Elouera Bushland Reserve (now Berowra Valley Bushland Park) and Muogomarra Sanctuary. Her practical support included a generous donation of an adjacent block to enlarge the Elouera Reserve.
As an interesting sidelight, Dr. Vickery's botanical knowledge was put to good use in the forensic field in the notorious "Bradley Case". Her presentation of evidence led to the conviction of the murderer of young Graham Thorne based on the evidence of plant fragments associated with his dwelling. This forensic contribution was later recognised by the award of an M.B.E.
In 1960 Joyce Vickery also received the Clark Medal of the Royal Society of N.S.W. in recognition of her many contributions to botanical science in Australia.
History of the Fund
The fund began in 1952 with a donation of 10 pounds from Mr Armstrong of Nyngan after he read an article in the Graziers Association journal. The research fund remained static until 1971 when the Linnean Society received an anonymous donation of $1000. From then until 1978 two anonymous donations of $1000 were received annually. It became an open secret that the donor was none other than Dr. Joyce W. Vickery, a member of the Linnean Society since 1930 and an active Council member since 1969 and latterly its Honorary Treasurer, 1971-1978.
Joyce Vickery's long-term aim was to revitalise a fund which could actively support scientific research in the natural sciences and achieve some worthwhile objective for the Society. She envisaged a time when the capital invested would produce sufficient interest to support good scientific research projects. Following her death in May 1979 the Linnean Society's Scientific Research Fund received a substantial boost of almost $34,000 from Joyce Vickery's estate, raising the capital to a level where the fund could become operational.
Shortly afterwards, by unanimous decision of Council, the fund was renamed the JOYCE W. VICKERY SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH FUND in recognition not only of her financial generosity but also her many years of active support for the Society.
Grants Awaded
Since 1980 the Society has made available annually, in individual grants
to research workers throughout Australia, a proportion of the interest
from the capital invested in the Joyce W. Vickery Scientific Research Fund.
The remainder is reinvested to increase the capital and to try to maintain
the value of the fund against the effects of inflation. How successfully
this has been achieved can be judged from the following figures:
| Year | Capital invested ($) | No. grants | Total Awarded ($) |
| 1980 | 49,914 | 1 | 300 |
| 1981 | 56, 186 | 3 | 1235 |
| 1982 | 63,284 | 9 | 3331 |
| 1983 | 68,182 | 10 | 3020 |
| 1984 | 74,510 | 7 | 2813 |
| 1985 | 79,353 | 12 | 5240 |
| 1986 | 83,343 | 16 | 4590 |
| 1987 | 92,204 | 17 | 8160 |
| 1988 | 99,933 | 17 | 6782 |
| 1989 | 104,963 | 13 | 6250 |
| 1990 | 114,167 | 20 | 8552 |
| 1991 | 135,894 | 13 | 6417 |
| 1992 | 144,044 | 13 | 5924 |
| 1993 | 154,173 | 10 | 5126 |
| 1994 | 160,009 | 16 | 5850 |
| 1995 | 166,595 | 16 | 6100 |
| 1996 | 176,042 | 12 | 6450 |
| 1997 | 241,758 | 11 | 5730 |
| 1998 | 242,046 | 12 | 7114 |
| 1999 | 242,325 | 22 | 5880 |
| 2000 | 265,699 | 9 | 6450 |
| 2001 | 256,012 | 9 | 6200 |
| 2002 | 281,010 | 20 | 8200 |
| 2003 | 16 | 8200 |
Current Awards (2010):
BARRY, Katherine. Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie
University.
PROJECT: Bacteria in butterflies and bright colouration: does
Wolbachia
infection drive the evolution of brightly coloured sexual signals?
Eurema hecbe is a colourful butterfly of North Queensland and
females choose males on the brilliance of their colour, which includes
both ‘human visible’ colour and ultraviolet iridescence. Infection
with Wolbachia feminises male butterflies. Can the males tell
the difference between the real females and the fake ‘neo-females?
Awarded $1,400
BUBOST, Anne-Laurance. Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie
University.
PROJECT: Development and evolution of cerebral lateralization:
fishes as model organisms.
Cerebral lateralization partitions the function between the two hemispheres
of the brain, e.g. handedness. It is thought to facilitate effectiveness
and doing more than one thing at once. Lateralisation varies enormously
between species and from one individual to another within a species.
Lateralised pigeons are better at finding grain hidden in grit than non-lateralised
individuals. It is thought that there may be a cost to lateralisation.
Awarded $500.
CARTHEY, Alexander. School of Biological, Environmental and Earth
Sciences, University of New South Wales.
PROJECT: The role of naivete in vulnerability to predators: recognition
and response in some native mammals.
Olfactory clues, odours, are the main way prey detect predators.
Naivete native mammals will be exposed to odours of an introduced predator
when feeding to see how long it is before the mammal recognised the danger
and stop s feeding. Recognition of the danger is not enough: the
vulnerable mammal must develop an anti-predator strategy. Awarded
$1,200
CORRELL, Rachel. School of Biological Sciences, Flinders University.
PROJECT: Testing Bergmann’s rule in a widespread Australian mammal:
geopraphic size variation in Rattus fuscipes, the bush rat.
Bergmann’s rule, studied elsewhere in the world but not in Australia,
considers that size is fundamental to the animal’s morphology, physiology,
ecology, behavior, evolution and probability of extinction, ie, the size
of widespread species shows clinal variation with regard to environmental
factors. Limited studies with Australian mammals show some do not
follow Bergmann’s Rule. Geographic size variation of bush rat will be monitored
against environmental factors. Awarded $700
CROOK, Natasha J. School of Environment Sciences and Resource
Management, University of New England.
PROJECT: Reduction of road kill in the bare-nosed wombat in the Nowendoc
‘hot-spot’ .
There have been few studies on the effects of road kills on wildlife
populations, but it could be serious and little is known about the ecology
of the bare-nosed wombat. This study will investigate the home range
and movement patterns of wombats that live near roads in the hot spot.
The work will determine whether the wombats will use culverts and
other structures to cross the road. Awarded $800.
HARMS, Danilo. School of Animal Biology, University of
Western Australia.
PROJECT: Vicariance and origins of diversity in Australian pseudoscorpions,
subfamily Pseudotyrannochthoniiae
These small, predatory arthropods belong to one of he oldest terrestrial
animal groups. In Australia, they are confined to wet temperate and
subtropical forests along the east coast from southern Queensland to Tasmania
and to southern forests of Western Australia. Ten species have been described
but there are an estimated 40 undescribed new species. Awarded
$ 1061.
HEAP, Stephen. Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne.
PROJECT: Factors influencing nest–site establishment in a terrestrial
toadlet, Pseudophryne bibronii
The toadleta are territorial but little is known about how they establish
their territories. It is generally thought that they fight and the better
fighter wins the territory, but it is now thought that they fight but give
up fighting if the prize is not worth the risk of injury or other costs.
Experiments will test different hypotheses. Awarded $500.
HOWARD, Floyd. School of Geosciences, University of Sydney
PROJECT: Aboriginal abandonment of Kangaroo Island.
When Europeans arrived on Kangaroo Island, there were no people there
and the wildlife was extraordinarily tame. The discovery of artifacts showed
that humans were there once, and the latest date was 4,300 years.
Kangaroo Island was cut off from the mainland 9,000 ago, so why and how
did they leave the Island? The sediments will be analysed for pollen
and charcoal with the expectation that change(s) will establish the
date of depopulation. Awarded $1,200
MILNER, Richard. Research School of Biology, Evolution Ecology
and Genetics, Australian National University.
PROJECT: Choosing your enemies based on their friends.
This study will determine whether the occurrence of defensive coalitions
of the fiddler crab (Uca mjoebergi) influences a floating individual’s
decision about whom to fight. Specifically, do they take into account
the size of a male’s neighbour before they initiate a fight with a resident?
Awarded $504.
STARRS,. Danswell. Research School of Biology, Australian National
University.
PROJECT: Dispersal and survival of freshwater fishes.
Many fish have a bipartite lifestyle in order to access necessary resources
and maximise survival. There is a great diversity of breeding strategies
in fishes. It was thought that larvae drifted in the current and
populations were open. For many fish, this is not so: they settle
close to ‘home’. This study will label fish in their infancy with
radio-isotopes and follow their dispersal. Awarded $1,000
THOMAS, Nanette. Annandale
PROJECT: Molecular and morphological analysis of the Winteraceae.
The taxonomy of the Winteraceae will be studied using molecular and
morphological analysis to elucidate generic boundaries. Awarded $610.
TURTON, Margaret. Wentworth Falls.
PROJECT: Monitoring a colony of White-striped free tailed Bats (Tadarida
australis)
In March/April, the juveniles and adults leave the maternity colony,
but we don’t know where they go. It is assumed that they are nomadic
and go to warmer climates, but in Sydney’s mild climate, this may not be
so. This study will use radio-tracking to determine if they remain
in the general area, and when and how they forage. Awarded $1,260.
WEGENER, Benjamin. School of Biological Sciences, Monash
Universiy.
PROJECT. Sexual selection in the Southern Bottletail Squid (Sepiadarium
austrinum)
This study will investigate the role of courtship, allocation of sperm,
promiscuity and multiple paternity. Awarded $1,300.
THE BETTY MAYNE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH FUND FOR EARTH SCIENCES
Grants from the Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences were made for the first time in 1998. Awards from the Fund are governed by the following rules:
1. The Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences has been established to provide financial assistance to support short term original research projects in all aspects of geology, including (but not necessarily restricted to) the fields of regional geology, tectonics, structural geology, stratigraphy, sedimentology, geomorphology, palaeontology, biostratigraphy, igneous and metamorphic petrology, geochemistry, mineralogy, economic geology and meteoritics.
2. Applications will be accepted from postgraduate students at recognised Australian Universities who are undertaking full-time or part-time higher degree studies with a geological emphasis. Students enrolled in Honours degree courses at recognised Australian Universities, whether full- or part-time, may also be considered for an award. Applications are also encouraged from amateur or professional geologists, whether in employment as such or not, who can demonstrate a level of achievement in original research in Earth Sciences, for example through a record of publications on the subject.
3. Projects proposed for support do not have to be restricted to Australian locations or specimens, but, given the Society's interests in the natural history of Australia, they must demonstrate a strong Australian context.
4. In awarding grants, the Council of the Society will assess:
6. The total amount of Fund money available for awards in any year will depend on interest income received by the Fund over the preceding year. Not more than 50% of this income will be distributed as grants; the remainder will be capitalised to increase the Fund. Individual grants will not normally exceed the level of equivalent awards from the Joyce W. Vickery Scientific Research Fund (currently $2500 for members and $1500 for non-members, subject to Council review). Money awarded must be used for research purposes, which may include the purchase of equipment, laboratory, photographic or other consumables, and fieldwork or travel within Australasia. Requests for subsistence, travel to conferences, or thesis preparation expenses, will not be supported.
7. The Council will take into account other sources of research funds currently held or applied for by the applicant. While financial support from other sources will not ordinarily exclude award of a grant from the Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences, a grant from this Fund cannot be held concurrently with one from the Joyce W. Vickery Scientific Research Fund.
8. Applications must be made on the form specific to the Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences available from this website, obtainable from the Secretary of the Society by telephoning (02) 9662 6196 by email at linnsoc@iinet.net.au, or by writing to the address below. The form may be accompanied by no more than three (3) typed pages of additional information, plus references and a list of the applicant's relevant publications over the previous five years.
9. Successful applicants are required to make a written report to the Society no later than 12 months from receipt of their grant, detailing progress of the project, briefly outlining research results, and justifying expenditure of the award money. Any publication arising from studies supported by the Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences must acknowledge that support. Type material, representative sample collections, relevant analytical data, and figured or mentioned thin sections, must be lodged in a state or national museum or university collection.
10. Intending applicants are strongly urged to seek assistance from their supervisor or an appropriate colleague with experince in writing research proposals, and to have their application reviewed before submission.
11. The Council's decision in regard to the award or non-award of grants from the Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences is final, and no correspondence will be entered into.
12. Deadline: The deadline for applications will be 1st March each year; however, in exceptional circumstances, applications for genuine emergency support may be considered at any time.
Betty Florence Mayne (1930-1991)
Betty Mayne was born in Young, NSW, on 13 April 1930. She was educated at the Presbyterian Ladies College, Pymble, prior to joining the nursing profession in which she served for some years.
In 1982, Betty retired from nursing and undertook extensive overseas travel. On returning to Sydney she became interested in the study of earth science and soon became a very keen and knowledgeable amateur mineralogist. She joined what was then the Friends of the Geological and Mining Museum (FOGAMM) Inc, serving as Vice President and in other executive positions. Betty was also a member of the Mineralogical Society of NSW Inc; she became its President in 1990, and organised the very successful Annual Seminar for the Mineralogical Societies from the rest of Australia.
Betty was a keen collector of minerals from worldwide locations, as well as gathering fossils and petrological specimens from around Australia. She was actively adding to her extensive collection up until her untimely death in July 1991.
Betty's will stipulated that her collection was to be sold at auction, with the proceeds to be evenly divided between the 2 societies so closely associated with her earth science interests. The Mineralogical Society of NSW has used its share of these funds to purchase mineral specimens for the Australian Museum collections.
The Friends of the Geological and Mining Museum, more recently The Earth Exchange Museum Society (TEEMS), also purchased specimens for the collection of the latter museum. However, with closure of the Earth Exchange in September 1995, TEEMS invested its share of the Betty Mayne bequest pending winding up of the society. After consideration of various options, the TEEMS council decided that donation of the accumulated capital to the Linnean Society of NSW to establish "The Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund", the purpose of which is to assist students of the earth sciences, would be a fitting memorial to perpetuate the memory of their fellow geologist.
The Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund commenced with a donation of $36,216.05 from TEEMS, which the Linnean Society of NSW has supplemented with an additional $35, 000 from reorganisation of its own funds. These amounts have been invested, with the intention of 50% of interest earned to be disbursed in the form of research grants to be first awarded in 1998.
Awards from the Betty Mayne Research Fund 1998 - 2002
Summary of the awards made from the Betty Mayne Research Fund since
its inception.
| Year | Capital invested ($) | No. grants | Total Awarded ($) |
| 1998 | 71,216 | 1 | 700 |
| 1999 | 71,216 | 7 | 2320 |
| 2000 | 78,216 | 5 | 2085 |
| 2001 | 78,216 | 4 | 2180 |
| 2002 | 81,990 | 6 | 2270 |
| 2003 | 4 | 1600 |
Current Awards (2008):
De PAOLI, Mathew. School of Geosciences, University of Sydney.
PROJECT: The eclogite-granulite transition: a case study in Breaksea
Sound, New Zealand.
This rare suite of high-grade metamorphic rocks may turn out to be
the oldest known rocks in New Zealand. In order to isotopically date
these rocks, zircons and garnets need to be carefully separated by physical
means from the rocks by mineral separation specialists. Awarded $1,000.
DORRINGTON, Neill. School of Geosciences, University of Sydney.
PROJECT. Changes in magnetic inclination during the historical
period in southeastern Australia.
This project aims to establish whether the disappearance of the magnetic
anomaly dated to between 1770 and1777 has been preserved within the sedimentary
record. If it has, then the chronology of this episode will be refined
and its use will assist dating of sediments of the earliest European settlement.
This is necessary because the precision of 14 C dating is easily disturbed
by human activity and these sediments are beyond the limit of 210 Pb analysis.
The geographic extent of the episode will be investigated also. Awarded
$1,200.
Further information and application forms for either grant can be obtained from the Secretary of the Society by telephoning (02) 9662 6196, by requesting it via email at linnsoc@iinet.net.au or by writing to the address below. Alternatively, print out the application form for the Joyce W. Vickery Scientific Research Fund or the Betty Mayne Scientific Research Fund for Earth Sciences, complete, and post to the address below to apply for a grant. Make sure that you enclose the required number of copies for the appropriate grant application.
The Secretary
Linnean Society of NSW,
PO Box 291