News from the Australian Museum

Scientific discoveries, ground-breaking expeditions, jaw-dropping exhibitions and Australia's biggest museum collection.

A new study re-examining flasher wrasses of Australia yields new and surprising findings, including a species new to science, <i>Paracheilinus amanda</i>.

Australia’s dazzling flasher wrasses!

Flasher wrasses are a group of dazzling, colourful little fishes. Of the twenty or so species found globally, three are known to occur in Australia – or so we thought! A new study re-examines this group, and includes a species new to science, named after an Australian Museum superstar.

15 September 2023

2023 Australian Museum Eureka Prize winners

19 individuals and teams recognised across the categories of Research & Innovation, Leadership, Science Engagement and School Science.

View the full list

Palaeontologist Lachlan Hart with fossil named Arenaepeton supinatus

Scientists name new species of giant amphibian found in retaining wall

Arenaepeton supinatus was discovered in rocks cut from a nearby quarry that were intended for the building of a garden wall.

9 August 2023

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Kayseraspis cf. brackebuschi, GSWAF55454, partially complete (articulated) specimen, 2160.78 m. Photographer Peter Haines. Copyright Geological Survey of Western Australia

Six new species of Western Australian trilobites

Six new species of trilobites have been found deep underground in the Canning Basin, Western Australia. Dr Patrick Smith at the Australian Museum and Heidi Allen from Geological Survey of WA tell us how this discovery has reshaped our understanding of ancient life and geological time in the region.

21 September 2023

Farm dam on a private property on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales.

Can farm dams help support frog conservation?

With the help of tens of thousands of citizen scientists across Australia, scientists from Deakin University and the Australian Museum explored the value of farm dams to frogs and determined what features of dams support more frog species.

14 September 2023

Statement regarding the Voice to Parliament

The Australian Museum (AM) shares a vision for reconciliation that is a united Australia that values and respects First Nations cultures, histories and knowledges.

8 September 2023

The new cartographers: Maps and the colonial archive Overland
15 Sep 2023
World famous Egyptologist Dr Mostafa Waziry on the upcoming Ramses & the Gold of the Pharaohs exhibition Architecture and Design
14 Sep 2023
Hologram Dinosaurs at the Australian Museum MamaMag
7 Sep 2023
Australian Museum renovation receives Best Public Building award Inside Construction
31 Aug 2023
Winners announced: 2023 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes Lab+Life Scientist
30 Aug 2023

Australian Museum Research Institute

Australian Museum, University of Canberra and University of New South Wales scientists excavating at McGraths Flat.

Citizen scientists help date fossil sites

Date a Fossil allows you to be a palaeontologist from home! Scientists engaged 271 citizen scientists in the Date a Fossil project, and in doing so, uncovered hundreds of microfossils in a unique iron-rich fossil site located in McGraths Flat, central New South Wales, Australia.

8 August 2023

<i>Iniistius bakunawa</i>, the Eclipse-spot Razor Wrasse.

The fish that devoured the moon

Public wet markets and trawl surveys unveil a new species of razor wrasse from the Philippines and Western Australia, adding to a group of fishes that live curious lives away from the megadiverse coral reefs.

5 September 2023

The Common Mist Frog (Litoria rheocola) suffered population declines and disappearances due to the amphibian chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis).

Faded out: What environments did Australian frog populations disappear from due to disease?

By looking at historical and recent frog records across Australia, including from FrogID, we reveal how Australian frog distributions have changed in response to the introduction of a deadly pathogen.

30 August 2023

From the Director: Let’s celebrate beautiful Bilas body adornment

The Australian Museum's exhibition Bilas: Body Adornment from Papua New Guinea is woven straight from the spirit of a community’s lore and showcased by way of physical adornment.

18 July 2023

Barka: The Forgotten River

Explore the magnificent Barka (Darling River) and its plight in a free exhibition opening at the Australian Museum Thursday 16 March 2023.

16 March 2023

New acquisition: Papa He’e Nalu Hawaiian surfboards

The Australian Museums new acquisition of Papa He’e Nalu Hawaiian surfboards provides the opportunity to create a dialogue and enhance interest around surfing, and a unique way to contextualise Australian surfing culture and history.

24 January 2023

Dr Anne Hoggett AM, Co-Director of the Australian Museum’s Lizard Island Research Stations (LIRS). Marketing image for Talbot oration 2023.

Watch the Talbot Oration

Dr Anne Hoggett AM explores the plight of our coral reefs and how we can help protect their future in the Australian Museum’s Talbot Oration.

Live at the AM
31 May 2023

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Happy Earth Day

At the Australian Museum, this Earth Day we hope to inspire you to think, step up and do something you’ll be proud of.

20 April 2023

Reflections on Global Conferences: COP15 & COP27

At the Australian Museum’s Climate Solutions Centre we are delighted by the historic outcome of the global summit for nature, Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) , just concluded in Montreal.

21 December 2022