WA Museum Collections and Research

29/05/2026

That's a wrap! As the final leg of , the team spent four days sampling at the remote Cocos (Keeling) Islands. They surveyed four shipwrecks 🏴‍☠️, the oldest dating back to the 19th century, and collected a diverse array of marine invertebrates 🦀 🐚 on lagoonal and outer reef dives. Specimens will be winging their way to Perth where the team will identify and sequence the DNA of potential new species and species not known from the waters around the atoll.

This project has been made possible through support by Foundation for the WA Museum and Parks Australia

25/05/2026

The team has completed Phase One of their project, diving the spectacular drop offs 🪸of Christmas Island in search of new species and surveying the Eidsvold wreck. Working alongside colleagues from Australian Marine Parks and Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Biosecurity, and ending with a 'tag team' community talk highlighting pests 🦪, pincers 🦀 & pirate ships 🏴‍☠️

The team is now on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands to make more discoveries!

This project has been made possible through support from Foundation for the WA Museum and Parks Australia

22/05/2026

What role do museums play in a world that feels increasingly divided?

That was one of the topics discussed this morning on ABC Kimberley Mornings, as part of their week-long celebration of International Museum Day.

WA Museum Director Culture and Communities Melanie Piddocke joined Matty Francis to talk about this years theme and the role museums can play in our community.

The conversation explored how museums help navigate complex ideas, encourage curiosity and critical thinking, and help people engage with history and culture in ways that feel personal and approachable.

Catch the full conversation (from 33:55): https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/kimberley-mornings/mornings/106695116

21/05/2026

Meet Michael, who assists behind-the-scenes of the Museum alongside our conservation team.

Michael has volunteered with the WA Museum for around 5 years, combining his background working in the Micro-Biology Laboratory at Royal Perth Hospital with his degree in historical studies.

Under supervision in the Conservation Laboratory, he works mainly on iron artefacts recovered from shipwrecks, using the level of care necessary when handling delicate artefact materials.

In these photos, Michael can be seen removing dust from a model in the Museum collection, applying a rust converter/inhibitor to an anchor recovered from the brigantine Fairy Queen 1860 shipwreck and removing concretion from the remains of an early smoothing iron recovered from the barque Eglinton 1842 shipwreck.

You can see his handiwork at the WA shipwrecks museum, where some artefacts from the Eglinton shipwreck are on display.

Michael is passionate about preserving history, explaining: "My interests lie with historical things, and the treatments I apply enable me to help preserve objects of historical importance to our State Museum and the people of Western Australia."

Thank you, Michael, for the care, skill and time you bring to the Museum.

Happy National Volunteer Week!

20/05/2026

🐝 It’s World Bee Day, so let’s talk about one bee that's been keeping a few secrets in our gardens.

The red-eyed resin bee, Megachile aurifrons, is commonly found across Australia and is a regular guest in Perth gardens. Like other resin bees, it is solitary, which means each female builds and provisions her own nest rather than living in a larger colony.

However, a recent study by Terry Houston and Kerry Stuart has shown this little bee has a slightly unusual nesting habit.

While most solitary bees build one sealed cell for each egg, providing a small supply of pollen and nectar for their larvae, this bee creates communal brood cells where 4–8 larvae feed from the same supply.

It's an efficient little set up that may also explain why the species is so widespread: More offspring for less effort.

Even better, this discovery was made using bee observation hotels – which you can set up at home yourself! Turns out, your everyday garden space can help scientists better understand our native bees.

So if you have a bee hotel at home, you are not only giving pollinators a place to nest, you might also be helping reveal what they get up to behind closed doors...

📷 Image 1: A male red-eyed resin bee on flowers. Images 2–3 A female bee carrying leaf pulp to her nest hollowing and sealing the entrance. Courtesy of Kerry Stuart.

18/05/2026

This International Museum Day, WA Museum divers are heading into the remote waters of Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands on a short but exciting field expedition. Their mission: to explore these unique marine environments and uncover species new to science. The team will be working alongside Parks Australia to document biodiversity and help us better understand our oceans.

This expedition was made possible through support from Foundation for the WA Museum.

08/05/2026

Happy Birthday, Sir David Attenborough 🎉

To celebrate, here's a throw back to the time Sir David visited us in 2012 and was introduced to a new spider species named after him!

Prethopalpus attenboroughi was discovered by WA Museum Head of Terrestrial Zoology Dr Mark Harvey and Queensland Museum Research Fellow Dr Barbara Baehr.

When Attenborough stopped by for a visit, he not only had a chat with the people who named the spider after him, but was was also gifted a copy of the publication describing the spider and a mounted photograph.

Attenborough’s lifelong commitment to the natural world, environmental stewardship and sustainability is second to none and our planet has been lucky to have him. 🥂 🌎

06/05/2026

A previously unrecognised species of koala has been confirmed from fossils in the Western Australian Museum collection 🐨

“Deep grooves in the cheekbone housed a large facial muscle, suggesting the animal may have had unusually large, mobile lips, possibly for manipulating eucalyptus leaves, or maybe to flare its nostrils to enhance its sense of smell and detect food from greater distances."

Fossils of the species have now been identified from more than a dozen cave deposits across southern Western Australia, including sites in Yanchep, Margaret River and the Roe Plain near Madura. This widespread distribution shows that these koalas once occupied a far broader range than previously recognised.

A previously unrecognised species of koala has been confirmed from fossils in the Western Australian Museum collection. It is the first new koala species identified from Western Australia.

04/05/2026

Diana Jones AM has been instrumental to the Museum’s work for nearly half a century. 🏆

Now, her extraordinary contribution has been recognised with our highest honour: Fellow of the Western Australian Museum.

Di joined the Museum in 1977 and, over her career, become one of our most respected researchers and senior leaders, holding titles including Curator of Crustacea, Head of Aquatic Zoology and Executive Director of Collections and Research.

She also built an international reputation, with her research contributing to major projects across WA, including work in the Dampier Archipelago and the Kimberley.

For many across the organisation, Di’s impact has also been a personal one. As a trailblazing woman in science, she has been a mentor and supporter to many staff over the years, leaving a lasting impact on those who have learned from her.

After officially retiring in 2024, Di has continued as a WA Museum Research Associate, ensuring her knowledge and expertise remain part of the Museum community.

Congratulations, Di, on this well-deserved recognition.

23/04/2026

👑 Last call for Australia’s tiniest contender!

The full moon clam (Ephippodonta lunata) is the only Australian finalist in this year’s International Mollusc of the Year competition.

It was discovered by WA Museum Curator of Molluscs Dr Lisa Kirkendale, beneath a rock in a bay while diving. “They looked like mini snowflakes,” she said.

That moment revealed a species new to science, and now it's representing the Nation in this quirky little competition.

Help us show the world how amazing Australia's biodiversity truly is – Voting closes 25 April!

VOTE MOON CLAM: https://www.unitasmalacologica.org/ephippodonta-lunata.html