Dr Adam Toomes
Postdoc Research Fellow (A)
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 2025 Toomes, A., Stringham, O. C., Moncayo, S., Hill, K. G. W., Maher, J., Watters, F., . . . Cassey, P. (2025). The pet trade of native species outside of their natural distributions within Australia is a biosecurity risk. CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE, 7(1), 14 pages.
2024 Hill, K. G. W., Stringham, O. C., Moncayo, S., Toomes, A., Tyler, J. J., Cassey, P., & Delean, S. (2024). Who's a pretty bird? Predicting the traded abundance of bird species in Australian online pet trade. Biological Invasions, 26(4), 975-988.
Scopus12024 Cardoso, P., Fukushima, C. S., Maxhelaku, A., Poczai, P., Porto, M., Puksas, A., . . . Veríssimo, D. (2024). Reform wildlife trade in the European Union. Science, 383(6687), 1066.
Scopus2 Europe PMC12024 Pili, A. N., Leroy, B., Measey, J. G., Farquhar, J. E., Toomes, A., Cassey, P., . . . Chapple, D. G. (2024). Forecasting potential invaders to prevent future biological invasions worldwide. Global Change Biology, 30(7), e17399-1-e17399-22.
Scopus22024 Chekunov, S., Stringham, O., Toomes, A., Prowse, T., & Cassey, P. (2024). Scale of unregulated international trade in Australian reptiles and amphibians. Conservation Biology, 38(5), e14355-1-e14355-12.
Scopus12023 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, 9 pages.
Scopus152023 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, 5(3), 999-1009.
Scopus82023 Lassaline, C. R., Stringham, O. C., Moncayo, S., Toomes, A., & Cassey, P. (2023). Untangling the web: dynamics of Australia's online terrestrial invertebrate trade. Austral Entomology, 62(3), 372-387.
Scopus8 WoS22023 Fukushima, C. S., Toomes, A., Veríssimo, D., & Cardoso, P. (2023). A big and hairy business: Investigating the interplay of species traits and trade dynamics in the tarantula pet market.
2022 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.
Scopus14 WoS62022 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.
Scopus16 WoS42022 Stringham, O., Maher, J., Lassaline, C., Wood, L., Moncayo, S., Toomes, A., . . . Hill, K. (2022). The dark web trades wildlife, but mostly for use as drugs.
2021 Stringham, O., García‐Díaz, P., Toomes, A., Mitchell, L., Ross, J., & Phill. (2021). Reptile smuggling is predicted by trends in the legal exotic pet trade.
2021 Stringham, O., Moncayo, S., Hill, K., Toomes, A., Mitchell, L., Ross, J., & Phill. (2021). Text classification to streamline online wildlife trade analyses.
2021 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.
Scopus17 WoS6 Europe PMC22021 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.
Scopus20 WoS52021 Stringham, O., Moncayo, S., Thomas, E., Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., Maher, J., . . . Shepherd, C. (2021). Dataset of seized wildlife and their intended uses.
2021 Toomes, A., García‐Díaz, P., Stringham, O., Ross, J., Mitchell, L., & Phill. (2021). Drivers of the live pet trade: the role of species traits, socioeconomic attributes and regulatory systems.
2021 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.
Scopus482021 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.
Scopus522021 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.
Scopus5 WoS12021 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.
Scopus42020 Stringham, O., Toomes, A., Kanishka, A., Mitchell, L., Heinrich, S., Ross, J., & Phill. (2020). A guide to using the Internet to monitor and quantify the wildlife trade.
2020 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.
Scopus18 WoS92020 Heinrich, S., Toomes, A., & Gomez, L. (2020). Valuable stones: The trade in porcupine bezoars. Global Ecology and Conservation, 24, 9 pages.
Scopus11 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.
Scopus19 WoS122020 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.
Scopus62 WoS33 Europe PMC13
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 2023 Co-Supervisor Assessing the extent to which third party regulatory activities impact online illicit wildlife trade. Doctor of Philosophy under a Jointly-awarded Degree Agreement with Doctorate Full Time Miss Ashley Jean Allen -
Other Supervision Activities
Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name 2022 - 2023 Principal Supervisor Quantitative identification of preferentially selected habitat variables of Egernia cunninghami: Testing the feasibility of photogrammetry as a non-invasive habitat survey method The University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Courtney Morris -
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
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