
Dr Adam Toomes
School of Biological Sciences
Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD (as Co-Supervisor) - email supervisor to discuss availability.
I adopt a generalist and collaborative approach to research, with a broad skill set ranging from data analytics to vertebrate field trapping and science communication.
My postdoctoral research focuses on the trade of exotic pets and the resulting conservation threats to Australian endemic reptiles. The international wildlife trade is incredibly complex and spans a wide diversity of traded taxa, use-types, political jurisdictions and both physical and online marketplaces. By adopting online and in-person market surveillance techniques, I aim to provide a contemporary characterisation of the poorly understood market for exotic reptiles and improve conservation management for at-risk species.
Other aspects of the international wildlife trade attract my interest, include the drivers of species' desirability and the interactions with livelihoods of local communities. I seek to continue to support evidence-informed management of trade and encourage collaboration between government and academia using an interdisciplinary approach.
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2022 - 2024 Postdoctoral Researcher The University of Adelaide -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2018 - 2022 The University of Adelaide Australia PhD 2017 - 2017 The University of Adelaide Australia Bachelor of Science (Honours, First Class) -
Research Interests
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Journals
Year Citation 2023 Toomes, A., Moncayo, S., Stringham, O. C., Lassaline, C., Wood, L., Millington, M., . . . Cassey, P. (2023). A snapshot of online wildlife trade: Australian e-commerce trade of native and non-native pets. Biological Conservation, 282, 110040.
2023 Stringham, O. C., Maher, J., Lassaline, C. R., Wood, L., Moncayo, S., Toomes, A., . . . Cassey, P. (2023). The dark web trades wildlife, but mostly for use as drugs. People and Nature, 11 pages.
2022 Toomes, A., García‐Díaz, P., Stringham, O. C., Ross, J. V., Mitchell, L., & Cassey, P. (2022). Drivers of the Australian native pet trade: the role of species traits, socioeconomic attributes and regulatory systems. Journal of Applied Ecology, 59(5), 1268-1278.
Scopus2 WoS12022 Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., Shepherd, C. R., Stringham, O. C., Swan, M., & Cassey, P. (2022). Strengthening protection of endemic wildlife threatened by the international pet trade: the case of the Australian shingleback lizard. Animal Conservation, 25(1), 91-100.
Scopus5 WoS42021 Stringham, O. C., Moncayo, S., Hill, K. G. W., Toomes, A., Mitchell, L., Ross, J. V., & Cassey, P. (2021). Text classification to streamline online wildlife trade analyses.. PloS one, 16(7), 1-12.
Scopus5 WoS42021 Stringham, O. C., García-Díaz, P., Toomes, A., Mitchell, L., Ross, J. V., & Cassey, P. (2021). Live reptile smuggling is predicted by trends in the legal exotic pet trade. Conservation Letters, 14(6), 10 pages.
Scopus5 WoS42021 Fukushima, C. S., Tricorache, P., Toomes, A., Stringham, O. C., Rivera-Téllez, E., Ripple, W. J., . . . Cardoso, P. (2021). Challenges and perspectives on tackling illegal or unsustainable wildlife trade. Biological Conservation, 263, 1-10.
Scopus162021 Cardoso, P., Amponsah-Mensah, K., Barreiros, J. P., Bouhuys, J., Cheung, H., Davies, A., . . . Fukushima, C. S. (2021). Scientists' warning to humanity on illegal or unsustainable wildlife trade. Biological Conservation, 263, 1-9.
Scopus172021 Stringham, O. C., Moncayo, S., Thomas, E., Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., Maher, J., . . . Cassey, P. (2021). Dataset of seized wildlife and their intended uses. Data in Brief, 39, 107531.
Scopus22021 Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., & Janssen, J. (2021). Legal or unenforceable? Violations of trade regulations and the case of the Philippine Sailfin Lizard Hydrosaurus pustulatus (Reptilia: Squamata: Agamidae). Journal of Threatened Taxa, 13(6), 18532-18543.
Scopus32020 Toomes, A., Garcíadíaz, P., Wittmann, T. A., Virtue, J., & Cassey, P. (2020). New aliens in Australia: 18 years of vertebrate interceptions. Wildlife Research, 47(1), 55-67.
Scopus7 WoS72020 Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., & Gomez, L. (2020). Valuable stones: The trade in porcupine bezoars. Global Ecology and Conservation, 24, 9 pages.
Scopus4 WoS32020 Toomes, A., Stringham, O. C., Mitchell, L., Ross, J., & Cassey, P. (2020). Australia's wish list of exotic pets: biosecurity and conservation implications of desired alien and illegal pet species. NEOBIOTA, 60(60), 43-59.
Scopus11 WoS92020 Stringham, O. C., Toomes, A., Kanishka, A. M., Mitchell, L., Heinrich, S., Ross, J. V., & Cassey, P. (2020). A guide to using the Internet to monitor and quantify the wildlife trade.. Conserv Biol, 35(4), 1130-1139.
Scopus30 WoS22 Europe PMC9- Stringham, O., Moncayo, S., Thomas, E., Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., Maher, J., . . . Shepherd, C. (n.d.). Dataset of seized wildlife and their intended uses.
- Toomes, A., García‐Díaz, P., Stringham, O., Ross, J., Mitchell, L., & Phill. (n.d.). Drivers of the live pet trade: the role of species traits, socioeconomic attributes and regulatory systems.
- Stringham, O., Maher, J., Lassaline, C., Wood, L., Moncayo, S., Toomes, A., . . . Hill, K. (n.d.). The dark web trades wildlife, but mostly for use as drugs.
- Stringham, O., García‐Díaz, P., Toomes, A., Mitchell, L., Ross, J., & Phill. (n.d.). Reptile smuggling is predicted by trends in the legal exotic pet trade.
- Stringham, O., Moncayo, S., Hill, K., Toomes, A., Mitchell, L., Ross, J., & Phill. (n.d.). Text classification to streamline online wildlife trade analyses.
- Stringham, O., Toomes, A., Kanishka, A., Mitchell, L., Heinrich, S., Ross, J., & Phill. (n.d.). A guide to using the Internet to monitor and quantify the wildlife trade.
I have over four years of experience as a marker and demonstrator across five undergraduate courses at The University of Adelaide, with teaching activities including arid vertebrate field surveys and statistical analysis methods.
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Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name 2023 Co-Supervisor Untangling the Web: Dynamics of the Australian Terrestrial Invertebrate Trade Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Charlotte Rachel Lassaline -
Mentoring
Date Topic Location Name 2021 - 2021 Examining the Role of Trust in Online Illicit Wildlife Trade The University of Adelaide Ashley Allen 2020 - 2022 Fragmentation and Habitat Degradation, Estimating Population Connectivity of a Threatened species: Egernia cunninghami The University of Adelaide Brayden Hunt 2020 - 2022 Participatory modelling of little corella (Cacatua sanguinea) populations in South Australia. The University of Adelaide Leslie Marker
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Committee Memberships
Date Role Committee Institution Country 2019 - 2021 President Biology Society of South Australia Biology Society of South Australia Australia
Connect With Me
External Profiles