In the public sphere, the more ‘flashy’ parts of palaeontology tend to get all the press – excavating fossils in exotic locations and publishing new scientific discoveries. But equally important is how the fossils are cared for, so they are available for research and display, both now and long into the future.Read more
Welcome to a blog series that introduces places, people, methods, and species that are important to palaeontological research at Te Papa and beyond. Curators Felix Marx and Alan Tennyson, along with researchers William Baker and Collection Manager Hazel Richards, start us off with a summary of what palaeontology is and how it works…Read more
‘This Superman story is actually a great portrayal of an extinct species and its tragic fate at the hands of humankind.’ Science researcher Rodrigo Salvador tells us more.Read more
Did you know snails can live in the desert? Natural history researcher Rodrigo Salvador tells us a little about a curious set of fossils discovered in Algeria.Read more
Despite the public image of fossil hunters as macho men with pickaxes, many women have made important contributions with their fossil discoveries. Scientist Lara Shepherd looks back at some pioneering female fossil hunters.Read more
A study published in the journal Science today reveals a new and unexpected origin for New Zealand’s iconic kiwi and overturns the previous idea that the ancestors of kiwi flew directly over from Australia (see Miocene fossils show that Kiwi are probably not phyletic dwarves, Paleornithological Research 2013, and St Bathan’sRead more
