The internet’s primary function as a repository for cat pictures is well established, but what about our pre-digital cat photos? Doesn’t the world deserve to see them as well? Imaging Technician Ish Doney describes the housing of the Digby/Woolf photographs collection and uses the opportunity to share some favourites.Read more
Recently the Botany team at Te Papa dedicated a week to curating several boxes of plant specimens – we called it the Botany Blitz! Our aim was to crack open boxes that have been patiently waiting – months, years, or in some cases decades – to be processed and databased. During our Blitz, we catalogued many specimens, learned new things about our collections, and discovered many fascinating stories along the way. Botany Curator Heidi Meudt processed one of the boxes from the botanist Thomas Kirk.Read more
Wellington recently competed in the iNaturalist City Nature Challenge. During the four days of the Challenge people recorded as many observations and species as possible. Science researcher Lara Shepherd was shocked that the introduced weed old man’s beard was the second-equal most observed species in Wellington. Read more
How many species of plants and animals do you think you could find in only four days? This year Wellington participants in the iNaturalist City Nature Challenge found 1537 species! Our Researcher Lara Shepherd and Curator Botany Leon Perrie summarise what was discovered.Read more
Wellington has its very own snail species, ‘Potamopyrgus oppidanus’, found nowhere else in the world – and it’s smaller than a grain of rice. But their numbers are alarmingly decreasing due to bikers and weeds.Read more
With the recent passing of Wellington café legend Suzy van der Kwast, history curator Stephanie Gibson delves into the history of café culture and coffee in Aotearoa New Zealand.Read more
Wellington’s Central Park – less familiar to many than the famous park of the same name in New York City – is one of the Wellington’s oldest public green spaces. History curator Kirstie Ross rambles through some of the highs and lows of its 114 year history.Read more
Ever felt like you’re removing more spiders from your home in summer compared to the rest of the year? Our bug expert Phil Sirvid explains why spiders are so prevalent in summer, and what kinds commonly turn up in Wellingtonian’s homes.Read more
Kia ora and welcome to my final reflections on my time working on the Remembering the Evergreen project at Te Papa.Read more
Most Wellingtonians will remember the Evergreen Coffee House as a popular spot in the buzzing nightlife of the Vivian-Cuba Street quarter – where you could get late night toasted sandwiches and ‘special coffees’ served with whisky from the café’s owner, well-known transgender queen, Chrissy Witoko. The interior walls of theRead more
This morning we were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Peter McLeavey, the pre-eminent New Zealand art dealer. Peter discovered New Zealand art as a young man in the early 1960s, soon after returning from his ‘OE’ in Europe. Meeting artists such as Colin McCahon, Toss Woollaston, Gordon Walters andRead more
Last week I posted a blog on the development of Poster Balls in New Zealand, along with a link to my Pinterest page where I am collating my finds. While I am particularly delighted with this photograph of a man dressed in a Dunlop tyre outfit from 1911 from the National Library’s collection, whatRead more
Increasing plant populations through propagation is one way to help threatened species. Last week, Wellington City Council biodiversity staff collected cuttings and seed from several plant populations in the Te Kopahou area on the coast south of Wellington. I tagged along. The targeted species Spectacular, steep habitat Wellington’s south coastRead more
Over 60 Matariki Wellington events will take place across the region from 13 June to 12 July Matariki is a truly Aotearoa New Zealand celebration. It celebrates Aotearoa’s own cycles of nature, tied to the southern hemisphere’s seasons and stars, and marks the end of one cycle and the beginning ofRead more
Citizen science is all the rage right now in New Zealand, especially given its emphasis in the National Science Challenges and Science and Society project. Getting the public participating in science experiments is seen as a way to get them engaged in science. Te Papa is currently running its ownRead more
