Rate My Professor Dan Lunney

Dan Lunney is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney. He earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the University of Sydney, graduating with the MSc in 1979 following pioneering research in mammalian ecology. In 2006, he received honorary Doctor of Science degrees from both the University of Sydney and Murdoch University. During the 1970s, Lunney worked with staff at the Australian Museum to initiate long-term surveys of vertebrates in eucalypt forests at Nadgee Nature Reserve on the south coast of New South Wales; these surveys represent one of the longest-running ecological datasets in the southern hemisphere. In the late 1970s, he became a Research Scientist with the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service and was later promoted to Principal Research Scientist at the Department of Environment and Conservation in recognition of his service to wildlife ecology and conservation. In 1992, he was appointed Chair of the inaugural Scientific Committee tasked with reviewing the status of all vertebrates in New South Wales, completing a comprehensive stock-take of the state's native fauna. Lunney has served as Conservation Officer for the Australian Mammal Society, edited 24 books including 16 for the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales, and has been the editor of the Australian Zoologist since 1987, expanding its annual output from 60 to over 600 pages. He holds positions as Senior Principal Research Scientist and Honorary Scientific Fellow at the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, and as a research associate at the Australian Museum.

Lunney's academic interests center on ecology and conservation biology, particularly mammals, forests, threatened species, ecological history, national parks, and wildlife management. His research addresses how small lizards and bats respond to fire, flood, and drought, as well as koala populations and broader forest fauna dynamics. He pioneered the discipline of ecological history in the 1980s by using settlers' diaries, newspapers, and other records to reconstruct past forests, track faunal changes, and guide restoration efforts. Lunney's work has directly influenced forestry protocols since 1980 to better conserve native fauna during harvesting. He advised on threatened species listings, protected area management, and has contributed to policy discussions on wildlife management and national park selection. A Fellow of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales since 1996, he is also a member of the IUCN World Conservation Union's specialist groups for bats and marsupials.