Rate My Professor Heidi Kolkert

Dr. Heidi Kolkert is a Lecturer in Ecosystem Management in the School of Environmental and Rural Science at the University of New England, Armidale, Australia. She also serves as the Collections Manager of the UNE Natural History Museum. Kolkert earned her PhD from the University of New England in 2021, with a thesis titled "Quantifying the ecosystem service of insectivorous bats in cotton." Prior to this, she completed a BSc (Hons) from the University of Tasmania in 2004, focusing on DFTD, stress, and reproduction in the Tasmanian Devil, and a BA-BSc from the same university in 2005. Her academic journey reflects a strong commitment to wildlife ecology and conservation.

Kolkert's research specializes in fauna ecology, particularly threatened species management, with a focus on insectivorous bats in agricultural ecosystems, acoustic analysis of bat echolocation and fauna sounds, wildlife interactions, and the impacts of environmental disturbances such as roads, renewable energy, and land-use changes on wildlife communities. Key publications include "Insectivorous bats selectively source moths and eat mostly pest insects on dryland and irrigated cotton farms" (Ecology & Evolution, 2020), "Insectivorous bats provide significant economic value to the Australian cotton industry" (Ecosystem Services, 2021), "Prey removal in cotton crops next to woodland reveals periodic diurnal and nocturnal invertebrate predation gradients from the crop edge by birds and bats" (Scientific Reports, 2021), and "Diet of two threatened insectivorous bats in a cotton agroecosystem: insights from a molecular study" (Journal of Bat Research & Conservation, 2022). She has received the 2021 Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Medal from UNE and the 2023 Robine End Wilson Grant Scheme award of $20,000 for the "Field guide for the Forest Fauna of Gattamburrumbee." As a dedicated educator, she coordinates units such as ZOOL310 Zoology Techniques, EM323 Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, EM353/553 Conservation Biology, and ECOL100 Ecology: Concepts and Applications. Kolkert supervises students at various levels in fauna ecology and conservation and offers consultancy services in acoustic analysis through Impact Ecology. Her work underscores the ecological and economic benefits of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes.