Rate My Professor Ryan Tangney

Ryan Tangney is a researcher in fire ecology and seed biology with strong ties to Murdoch University's School of Environmental and Conservation Sciences. He commenced his academic career at Murdoch University with an honours study focused on Leucopogon seed dispersal as part of broader projects on Banksia woodlands. Tangney completed his Doctor of Philosophy at Curtin University, examining how variation in fire season and intensity leads to different seed fates in Banksia woodlands species. His research has been affiliated with Murdoch University's School of Environmental and Conservation Sciences in numerous publications, collaborating with faculty such as Neal J. Enright and Joseph B. Fontaine.

Tangney's research interests center on seed traits, physical dormancy, thermal thresholds, and plant responses to fire cues including soil heating, smoke, and seasonality shifts. He investigates post-fire recovery strategies, ecological resilience in restored woodlands, and pyro-thermal niches in fire-prone ecosystems like Banksia woodlands and mesic forests. Career appointments include PhD researcher at Curtin University and Kings Park Science (Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority), Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of New South Wales Centre for Ecosystem Science, Adjunct Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia School of Agriculture and Environment, and currently Research Scientist in the Fire Science Program at the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. Key publications include 'Success of post-fire plant recovery strategies varies with shifting fire seasonality' (Communications Earth & Environment, 2022), 'Seed traits determine species' responses to fire under varying soil heating scenarios' (Functional Ecology, 2020), 'Mechanisms of Fire Seasonality Effects on Plant Populations' (Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 2019), 'A research agenda for seed-trait functional ecology' (New Phytologist, 2019), and 'Comment on "Self-thinning forest understoreys reduce wildfire risk, even in a warming climate"' (Environmental Research Letters, 2024). These contributions have advanced knowledge on fire management for biodiversity conservation.