1 June 2009
INTERNATIONAL RESEARCHERS TO VISIT MUSEUM OF TROPICAL QUEENSLAND
The Museum of Tropical Queensland's (MTQ) natural history specimens will be the focus of interest for a number of visiting marine biologists in early June, as researchers from Victoria, New Zealand, Poland and South Africa take advantage of the museum's internationally-significant collections.
Dr Niel Bruce, Senior Curator of Tropical Biodiversity at the Queensland Museum, said the Museum's collections are a drawcard for marine biologists, with the Museum regularly receiving visiting researchers from around the world.
"Our mission is to increase the knowledge of Queensland's biodiversity through research, displays and publications. We expect several scientific papers will be produced by these researchers based on their visits," Dr Bruce said.
Dr Phil Bock, of Museum Victoria, Melbourne, is a specialist in the systematics of Bryozoa (also know as 'Lace Corals'). Dr Bock will provide MTQ with an assessment of the Bryozoa component of the collections, including identifying specimens in readiness for them to be registered.
Dr Shane Ahyong is a world expert on decapod crustaceans such as crabs and lobsters and is based at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in Wellington, New Zealand. He will work primarily on deep water bottom fauna of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea collections, collected during a series of expeditions known as 'CIDARIS', from 1988 - 1992. Dr Ahyong will also be doing some of his own research on Pacific crustaceans.
Ms Kerry Hadfield is a PhD candidate at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa. She is studying fish-parasitic isopods of the Indian Ocean. During her visit she will work with her co-supervisor Dr Bruce and further progress the taxonomic component of her PhD thesis.
Ms Ania Stepién is a PhD candidate at the University of Lodz, Poland. During her visit, funded by the CReefs program and the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), she will be working on the CReefs collections of small crustaceans from the Great Barrier Reef which will form the basis of her PhD thesis.
MTQ Director Peter McLeod said that the Museum encouraged visiting researchers.
"These experts make invaluable contributions to our own collection development, and in turn we are delighted to be fulfilling our role as a repository of heritage to be actively studied," Mr McLeod said.
Entry to the Museum is free for locals through the Council Community Pass, supported by Townsville, Burdekin and Charters Towers councils.
The Museum of Tropical Queensland, a campus of the Queensland Museum, is open from 9.30am to 5pm daily.
