10 May 2010Clever camouflage helps bearded fish avoid detection Fish curators Sue Morrison from the Western Australian Museum and Jeff Johnson from the Queensland Museum have identified a new species of fish as a result of the recent field work they undertook in the far north Kimberley. The team of scientists, led by the WA Museum and partnered by Woodside, travelled to Adele Island and Montgomery Reef to collect and document the marine flora and fauna of the area. Over both locations they found a total of nine specimens of the previously unidentified Bearded Velvetfish.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010The rise of super predatory sharksAs part of the Western Australian Museum’s International Year of Biodiversity lecture series, Museum curator of palaeontology Dr Mikael Siversson will present a fascinating public lecture on the rise and subsequent decline in diversity of super predatory lamniform sharks. Specialising in fossil sharks and rays, Dr Siversson has also co-authored several publications on extinct marine reptiles and dinosaurs and is considered by his peers as a leading authority on Cretaceous lamniform sharks (an order of shark from the latter part of the Age of Dinosaurs).Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Spiders. Friends or Foe?To mark the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity, Dr Mark Harvey Senior Curator and Head of Department of Terrestrial Zoology at the Western Australian Museum will present a public lecture on how to determine whether a spider is a friend or foe. Dr Harvey’s lecture on Spectacular spider stories: a guide to our eight-legged friends will provide a light-hearted and insightful approach on arachnids and their important role in maintaining a healthy environment.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Western Australian Museum welcomes new CEOThe Western Australian Museum Board of Trustees and staff have welcomed the announcement of a new director for the Museum. Culture and the Arts Minister John Day today announced the successful candidate as Mr Alec Coles, Director of Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums in the United Kingdom. Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the WA Museum Tim Ungar said the Museum looked forward to welcoming Mr Coles to Western Australia. “Mr Coles’ experience with museum development, major exhibitions and public engagement strategies will significantly benefit the Museum.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Eleven new species named in honour of Charles DarwinScientists from the Western Australian Museum have led a team of Australian researchers in naming 11 new species after the founder of the theory of natural selection, Charles Darwin. To mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of The Origin of the Species and the 200th anniversary of the birth of Darwin, the WA Museum has published a special edition of the Records of the Western Australian Museum which includes 16 newly named species from Australia, 11 of which are named darwini.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Equilibrium, WA Museum and Nick Cave website dominate the Australian Web AwardsPerth web development company, Equilibrium, in partnership with the Western Australian Museum scooped the pool at the Australian Web Awards on Friday night winning four major awards for ‘Nick Cave – the exhibition’, including Fast Hit Most Outstanding website. The site stood out from more than 200 national entries winning the awards for Best Government website, Best Not for Profit website, Best Arts and Events website and Most Outstanding website in Australia.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Australian museums collaborate to uncover the mysteries of Kimberley coast marine life A new project led by the Western Australian Museum and partnered by Woodside Energy, is set to extensively add to our understanding of the marine biodiversity of Australia’s remote north-west. The Marine Life of North Western Australia Project has a high likelihood of discovering species in the region for the first time and is a collaborative work involving the WA Museum along with four other Australian museums in a three-year research program.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010The original Boxing Kangaroo flag heads homeAfter 26 years on American soil the original Boxing Kangaroo flag, made famous by Australia II when it won the historic 1983 America’s Cup, today returned home to Fremantle. Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships Event Director John Longley and Perth 2011 Board Member Skip Lissiman, two of the original crew members from Australia II, presented the famous Boxing Kangaroo flag to the Western Australian Museum.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Duncan Merrilees 1922 to 2009Duncan Merrilees was born in 1922 and spent his childhood years in Sydney. He graduated from the University of Sydney in 1942 with a degree in chemistry. Like many chemists in Australia during WWII, his services were put to use in industry and he was transferred to Tasmania were he worked at a paper mill. At this time he had already developed a fascination for geology and in particular the chemistry and physics of igneous rocks. After the war Duncan pursued a career as science teacher as a means of supporting himself and his wife.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Desert cameras detect space fireballResearchers from the Western Australian Museum, the Imperial College in London and Ondrejov Observatory in the Czech Republic have identified a unique meteorite and its orbit in the Solar System. The meteorite was tracked through a network of cameras as it fell to Earth in July 2007. The cameras take a single time-lapse picture every night to record any fireballs in the sky. The Desert Fireball Network Project of All-Sky Cameras is set up in the Nullarbor Plain to monitor incoming meteors and track any possible meteorites to the ground so scientists can recover them.Read more News Western Australian Museum
10 May 2010Children launch their own exhibition at the WA Museum – AlbanyThe WA Museum – Albany is launching a new exhibition on 8 August, featuring themes and objects selected and created entirely by young people. xHIBIT aLBANY is the culmination of a joint project between the Commissioner for Children and Young People, the Western Australian Museum and Millennium Kids aimed at giving young people the opportunity to have a say about how they think museums should present exhibitions.Read more News Western Australian Museum
24 Jun 2009Nick Cave: the exhibition photo galleryThis photo gallery contains a selection of images that feature in Nick Cave: the exhibition, on show at the Western Australian Museum from 23 May – 19 July 2009.Read more Photo Galleries Western Australian Museum