Madelyn Mangan

Qualifications

BSc Biology (Hons)

MSc Biology

Position

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Contact details

Centre for Biodiveristy and Conservation Science

School of the Enivornment, The University of Queensland

Room 384, Level 3, Goddard Building (08), St. Lucia Campus

Email: m.mangan"at"uq.edu.au

ResearchGate: researchgate.net/profile/Madelyn-Mangan

Overview

I am disease ecologist who uses genomic analyses and epidemiological modelling to understand the drivers of wildlife resilience to infectious disease across species, populations and individuals. My primary research focuses on the coexistence of amphibian populations with pathogenic chytrid fungus, although I also have conducted research on Japanese encephalitis virus transmission, drivers of koala declines due to chlamydiosis, and behavioural ecology of tick vectors in the USA.

I completed both my BSc and MSc at Truman State University (Missouri, USA), where I conducted research focused on behavioural ecology and demographics of the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) – a medically significant vector of human and wildlife pathogens.

After completing my MSc, I served as a government biologist on commercial fishing vessels in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska, worked in Thailand as field staff for an Asian elephant ecotourism program, and later joined Operation Wallacea as a mammal scientist conducting surveys in Cusuco National Park, Honduras.

I completed my PhD studies (currently under examination) at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia under supervision of Laura Grogan. My PhD work was focused on epidemiological modelling of pathogenic chytrid fungus dynamics in amphibian communities, as well as population genomics and immunogenetics of the endangered Fleay's barred frog (Mixophyes fleayi).

Research Interests

A passion for wildlife conservation is the driving force behind my career. In order to allocate limited management resources effectively, we require a deep and mechanistic understanding of the forces which drive threatened species towards extinction. Through an integrative approach incorporating population genomic assessment, mathematical modelling, and classical field studies, I aim to fill key knowledge gaps which will assist in the planning of boots-on-the-ground conservation interventions.

Research Keywords

Disease ecology, population genetics, population ecology, epidemiological modelling, spatial ecology, chytridiomycosis

IMG_20241207_224518677~4_edited_edited.j

Publications

2025

Grogan, L. F., Mangan, M. J., Kerlin, D. H., Peel, A. J., McCallum, H. I. (2025). Evaluating strategies for managing koala chlamydiosis using dynamic models. Biological Conservation, 302, 110997. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2025.110997.
Mangan, M. J., McCallum, H. I., West, M., Scheele, B. C., Graeme, G. R., Grogan, L. F. (i2025). Differential recruitment drives pathogen‐mediated competition between species in an amphibian chytridiomycosis system. Ecological Applications. DOI: 10.1002/EAP.3085 (IF 4.3).

2024

Moore, K. T., Mangan, M. J., Linnegar, B., Athni, T. S., McCallum, H. I., Trewin B. J., Skinner, E. (2024). Australian vertebrate hosts of Japanese encephalitis virus: a review of the evidence. Transactions of The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, trae079. DOI: 10.1093/trstmh/trae079

2023

Grogan, L. F., Mangan, M. J., McCallum, H. I. (2023). Amphibian infection tolerance to chytridiomycosis. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 378(1882), 20220133. DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2022.0133 (IF 5.4).
Foré, S. A., Mangan, M. J., Mantia, A. M., Kolok, J. T., & Kim, H. J. (2023). Multiple physiological cohorts comprise seasonal activity of wild Amblyomma americanum (Acari: Ixodidae) nymphs. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 14(2). DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2022.102091

2022

Mangan, M. J., Foré, S. A., & Kim, H. J. (2022). Seasonal changes in questing efficiency of wild Amblyomma americanum (Acari: Ixodidae) nymphs. Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, 13(5). DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2022.101988

2020

Mangan, M. J., Foré, S. A. & Kim, H. J. (2020). Using haem concentration as a metric of physiological age to infer demographic structure in natural field and forest populations of host-seeking Amblyomma americanum adults. International Journal of Acarology. DOI: 10.1080/01647954.2020.1758776

2019

Walker, J. M., Montgomery, C. E., Cordes, J. E., & Mangan, M. (2019). Morphological variation, habitat, and conservation status of parthenogenetic Aspidoscelis tesselatus patterns class C in the canyonlands of southeastern Colorado, USA. Herpetological Conservation and Biology, 14(1), 119-131.

2018

Mangan, M. J., Foré, S. A., & Kim, H. J. (2018). Ecological modeling over seven years to describe the number of host‐seeking Amblyomma americanum in each life stage in northeast Missouri. Journal of Vector Ecology, 43(2), 271-284.
Friebohle, J., Chapman, A., Lovera, K., Mangan, M., Schaefer, C. H., Wronkiewicz, N. (2018). Geographic distribution: Apalone spinifera (Spiny Softshell). Herpetological Review, 49(2), 284.