Marilyn Ball

Marilyn Ball is a tenured researcher at the Research School of Biology, Australian National University, leading the Ball Group - Ecophysiology of salinity and freezing tolerance. Active since 1990, she studies plant adaptations to environmental stresses across mangroves, temperate evergreen sclerophylls, and Antarctic vegetation. A member of the Australian Antarctic Research Advisory Committee, she serves on editorial boards of Ecosystems, Global Change Biology, Oecologia, and Plant, Cell & Environment.

• PhD in Environmental Biology from ANU (1982)
• Postdoctoral positions at UC Berkeley (1981-1984) and ANU North Australia Research Unit (1985-1988)

Her research focuses on evolutionary trade-offs between stress tolerance and hydraulic/photosynthetic coordination in leaves. Key areas include climate change impacts on carbon gain, mangrove drought responses, Antarctic moss physiology, and plant morphology constraints. Current projects explore temperature extremes in mangroves and Antarctic moss thermal tolerance.

Recent publications highlight mangrove biocomplexity, nitrogen fertilization effects in saline environments, and freeze avoidance mechanisms in mosses. Trends span plant-water relations, salinity interactions, and climate warming's influence on photosynthetic capacity.

• Scientific Awards:
  • Chancellor's Award for Distinguished Contribution to the University (2015)
  • Peter Baume Award (2015)
  • Joint College Award for Excellence in Education (2009)
  • Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science (2009)
  • Lifetime Honorary Member, Ecological Society of America (2007)
  • Hirota Naora Award (2023)
  • RSB Outstanding Thesis Prize (2022)

Ball has supervised multiple ARC Discovery Grants (2008-2013) addressing temperature extremes, salinity tolerance, and Antarctic moss carbon dynamics. Her lab includes Postdoctoral Fellow Jie Liang, Research Officer Ziqi Meng, Honorary Professor John Finnigan, and visiting researchers from Antarctic vegetation studies.