高清福利片

A new exhibition at the University鈥檚 Chau Chak Wing Museum celebrates a landmark book on听Australian Seashores听鈥� its imagery, its impact on science, its popularity with the public and academics alike and the crucial role of pioneering women scientists in its publication and longevity.听听听

Australian Seashores听was the passion project of William J Dakin, a long-serving and internationally recognised professor of biology at the University, among whose many notable achievements was making science come alive for non-academics, including with his ABC radio series听Science in the 高清福利片听补苍诲听Science Talk,听broadcast during the 1930s and 鈥�40s.听听

The book, first published in 1952,听declared its broad audience from the outset as 鈥淎 guide for the beach-lover, the naturalist, the shore fisherman and the student鈥�. Equally ambitious was the array of topics covered, from how different coastlines are formed and change and why the sea is a particular colour, to guides for identifying the main plant and animal species found on Australian seashores.听听

鈥淭he book was a major success from the start, reprinted twice within the first four years and then revised over a 40-year period,鈥� said Tony Gill,听curator of natural history听at the Chau Chak Wing Museum.听听

鈥淚t invited Australians to identify as coastal dwellers. It was hugely influential; inspiring and training generations of marine scientists and educating the Australian public. It continues to be used as an identification guide to this day.鈥澨� 听

Australian Seashores听focuses on the New South Wales coastline extending across the Peronian Region, an area that extends听from Moreton Bay, Queensland to Wilson鈥檚 Promontory, Victoria, and concentrates on plants and animals that occupy the narrow part of the shore that is covered and uncovered by the changing tides, the 鈥榠ntertidal zone鈥�. This is an area of high biodiversity, which at the time of publication was poorly understood, even though it was easily accessible.听听

Many plant and animal species occupy distinct bands within the intertidal zone, which the听Seashore听team described as 鈥榸onation鈥� patterns. Until the book鈥檚 publication听using original Australian photographs, students and researchers depended on textbooks that used overseas examples of zonation.听 听

鈥淢any of the exhibition鈥檚 images are scans from glass negatives in the collection to produce large, high resolution, stunning images of animals and landscapes including Long Reef, Newport, Narooma, Jervis Bay, Fingal Beach, Eden and Ballina. This is the first time they have ever been seen on any museum鈥檚 walls, after being held by the University since 1984, thanks to a generous donation by the Dakin family. They are accompanied by specimens from听the Macleay collections.鈥澨�

The book was founded on fieldwork and published research by its three biologist authors 鈥� the University鈥檚 Professor Dakin and Dr Isobel Bennett and Elizabeth Pope from the Australian Museum, an alumna of the University. Much of the fieldwork was arduous and done in difficult conditions and Dakin鈥檚 increasingly poor health meant the women, (assisted by Dakin鈥檚 wife Gladys and by a friend of Pope鈥檚, Helen Turner) took up much of the fieldwork. When Dakin died in 1950, the full responsibility of finalising it for publication fell to Pope and Bennett. This was at a time when there was little participation, encouragement, or recognition of women in science.听

鈥淒r Bennett had no formal education in science and was originally hired by Professor Dakin, after a chance meeting on a cruise, as a secretary to assist in a book on whaling. Encouraged by him, she went on to make major contributions to marine science, eventually publishing eight more books of her own, after听Australian Seashores,鈥� said curator Tony Gill. 鈥淥ur current marine scientists听Professor Maria Byrne听补苍诲听Professor Emma Johnston听have paid tribute to Dr Bennett鈥檚 trailblazing example.鈥澨�

鈥淪he kept the book alive through 11 reprints and editions, updating the identifications and names of each species in each edition to keep pace with a growing scientific understanding of the fauna. In 1986, asked to bring the book up to date, Dr Bennett not only revised the text but also replaced its hundreds of black-and-white images with colour photos.鈥澨�听

Fittingly, given his ambition to engage the public, Professor Dakin directly benefitted from contributions by citizen scientists, such as intertidal specimens sent by a Clarence River resident and information from an ABC radio listener that led to new research on prawn biology in Tuggerah Lakes.听Australian Seashores听served to further empower and equip the public to contribute in this way by providing the basic means for identifying organisms and for understanding their biology.听听

鈥淚n keeping with this and the continued emergence of citizen science, massively boosted by social media, we are inviting museum visitors to realise the potential for the wonderfully detailed听Australian Seashores听photos to document environmental change. They can upload their contemporary photos, using a QR code, to be compared with the 70-year-old images,鈥� said Gill.听听

鈥淚t鈥檚 a fitting tribute to the book鈥檚 rich history and continuing relevance that we continue to bring its scientific contribution to life in new and meaningful ways.鈥澨�听

EXHIBITION DETAILS

What:听Australian Seashores听

Where:听, University Place, Camperdown, NSW 2006听

When:听6 August 2022 鈥� April 2023 听

Opening hours: Mon-Fri, 10am-5pm; Thursday until 9pm; Sat-Sun, 12-4pm.听

Cost: Free听