Grace Hutton (Collection Manager Pacific Cultures) introduces us to Nguzunguzu, the guardians of war canoes from the Solomon Islands.  With Kesoko (a water spirit) putting travelling crew members at risk, Nguzunguzu were secured to the prow of every departing war canoe to ensure their safe passage. In the 1800s, on theRead more

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I was recently fortunate to be jetboated up the Whanganui River to collect plants. I hadn’t been in a jetboat before, but more significant than the fun of that novelty, it was a wonderful opportunity to get into an area whose botany has been little studied. The Department of Conservation’sRead more

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Adult white-bellied sea eagle in flight, Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, Australia, April 2007. Photographer: Sonja Ross © Sonja Ross, courtesy NZ Birds Online.

Packed full of stunning pictures, detailed information and beautiful bird calls, NZ Birds Online is an online encyclopaedia of birds created in collaboration between Te Papa, DOC and OSNZ. We’re indebted to the photographers who’ve shared their images with us – and now the world! Sonja Ross is the next intrepid birder in our Meet the photographers series.Read more

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Lisa Renard- Te Papa intern from the University of Strasbourg, France Lisa is a PhD student and studies at the University of Strasbourg in social and cultural anthropology with Prof Denis Monnerie. She is also a Teaching Assistant and Lecturer. Lisa was interning at Te Papa for two months, fromRead more

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Congratulations to Phil Garnock-Jones on being awarded the Nancy Burbidge medal, for his longstanding and significant contribution to Australasian systematic botany. Phil is the first New Zealander to receive the award, which is the highest bestowed by the Australasian Systematic Botany Society. Systematic botany is the study of the relationships, naming, andRead more

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What will you find at the beach this summer? Join Te Papa scientists online at 1.30pm today, as they show you some of the amazing animals and plants you can find on your beach holidays. We’ll be talking about glow-in-the-dark invertebrates, how to tell the difference between coastal birds, andRead more

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Sometimes, nature throws up something that’s weirder than you can possibly imagine. Take a look at these pictures – do you know what they are? Clue: They’re both young versions of the same animal. Any ideas? Our Curator of Invertebrates, Rick Webber, will reveal all during Science Live: Coastal CreaturesRead more

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Happy news for historical art lovers: Te Papa is soon to have a newly appointed Curator Historical International Art. Dr Mark Stocker is currently a lecturer at University of Otago’s Department of History and Art History, where he has been Associate Professor since 2003. He is an expert on historicalRead more

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Like many Kiwis, to me there are only three types of seaweed: Seaweed Beachus – seaweed washed up at the beach; Seaweed Sushius – seaweed used in sushi; and Seaweed Fish Linius – seaweed that your fishing line gets tangled in. But that terrible seaweed joke, aside from demonstrating myRead more

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