Western Australian Herbarium

04/09/2026

Dr Juliet Wege has been appointed Curator of the Western Australian Herbarium, the first female botanist to take up the role since its formation in 1929.

Juliet has worked as a taxonomist in WA for more than 25 years, naming and describing novel species from an array of genera and leading projects to document some of the state’s most at risk species. She has curated more than 20,000 specimens in Australian and international herbaria and has amassed a wealth of knowledge on Australia’s botanical history and triggerplant flora. She is a long-standing member of the Nuytsia editorial team, a contributing editor for the Flora of Australia, and a former Australian Botanical Liaison Officer at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. She will bring a passion for biodiversity conservation, a wealth of practical experience, and plenty of fresh ideas to the role.

We thank Dr John Huisman for his many and varied efforts during his term as Curator. He will continue with his algal research at the Herbarium in a part-time capacity as he transitions to retirement over the next year.

03/09/2026

Gastrolobium leakeanum can only be found perched on rocky mountain slopes in Stirling Range National Park. It is an erect shrub to 2 m high with large, broadly elliptic leaves and a vibrant red corolla that contrasts strongly with the dense, pale hairs on the calyx and flower stalks. It is one of a small number of species of Gastrolobium with resupinate flowers (i.e. they are presented upside down). This, combined with the large, red corolla, provides a hint that it is pollinated by birds (honeyeaters). Although mostly pollinated by bees, bird-pollination is thought to have evolved more than once in Gastrolobium.

Gastrolobium leakeanum was named and described by colonial botanist James Drummond in 1848 in the Perth newspaper The Inquirer (there is sufficient information in this letter to regard the species as formally published according to the exacting rules of the botanical code of nomenclature). Other iconic Western Australian species named and described by Drummond in newspaper articles include Verticordia grandis (Scarlet Featherflower) and Hakea victoria (Royal Hakea).

Photo: Ryan Craig

21/08/2026

Flannel Flowers have flourished in the National Science Week fight for Australia's favorite flower.

We have a few species here in Western Australia including Actinotus humilis, shown here flowering on sandplain near Perenjori following fire.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-21/wildflower-of-the-year-vote-blog/107022960

05/08/2026

It’s time to cast your vote for Australia’s most amazing flower from the unsung understorey.

The ABC has selected 10 finalists, all with a superpower (only 10 we cry?!). Perhaps you’ve got some thoughts on what’s missing from this list, or which bloom should reign supreme.

Our triggerplant expert Juliet Wege reckons there's only one choice. She may well be onto something…

Move over waratahs and banksias! These 10 flowers from the unsung understorey are not just pretty faces, they have surprising tricks up their sleeves.

31/07/2026

As we get closer to Djilba and spring, it’s the perfect time to get down and take a closer look at slime moulds. The Red Raspberry Slime Mould (Tubifera ferruginosa) is one of many species you may find out and about on rotting wood, bark or amongst the leaf litter. It is an easily recognised species because of its relatively large and brightly coloured bleb stage of development, hence its common name. The bleb stage is the transition between the feeding plasmodium (slime) and the mature pseudoaethalium filled with mature spores. As the bleb matures, it turns a brownish colour and is usually quite difficult to find as it will be camouflaged against the substrate. These slime moulds occur as a single pseudoaethalium up to a relatively large grouping, each one pillow-shaped, 5–20 mm across, with a somewhat rounded and intricate top surface. A pseudoaethalium is a compound fruiting of many individuals that fuse to look like one individual, which the mature top surface reveals.

This species occurs on rotting wood or thick bark, often on Banksia species, in seasonally wet periods in the south-west and Kimberley regions. Recent studies suggest this species may not occur in Australia and work is ongoing to determine which species we may have here.

Photo: K. Knight

14/07/2026

Some cutting-edge research has revealed that the Threatened species Adenanthos eryei — first collected in 1973 only to never be seen again — is a hybrid between A. forrestii and A. cuneatus.

In the absence of living plants, genomic DNA was sequenced from a duplicate of the original collection housed at the Australian National Herbarium and compared to DNA from related species to reveal its taxonomic status. It will soon be known as A. × eyrei to show that it is a hybrid and will likely be de-prioritised for conservation efforts.

This fabulous collaborative effort shows the value of herbarium collections and the secrets they hold long after they are pressed and dried. Congratulations to the project team – Ben Anderson, Rachel Binks and Katherine Taylor (DBCA Biodiversity and Conservation Science), Emma Adams (DBCA Esperance District) and Brendan Lepschi (Australian National Herbarium, CSIRO).

More information is available on the Australasian Systematic Botany Society website (https://asbs.org.au/genomic-clues-in-the-vaults/) and in the team's research paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10592-026-01799-2

Specimen image courtesy of CSIRO.

02/07/2026

Malvaceae mavens Carol Wilkins and Kelly Shepherd are bringing over 60 years of combined specialist knowledge to a three-year project on tribe Lasiopetaleae. With support from the National Taxonomy Research Grant Program, the duo will create online profiles of more than 200 species for the Flora of Australia, including some taxonomic novelties and plenty of rarities.

The first year of the project has seen them visit the Queensland Herbarium and Australian National Herbarium where they verified the identity of thousands of collections while carefully measuring plant features to refine taxonomic descriptions and associated information to ensure the most up-to-date and accurate information will be mobilised.

The project team also includes Katherine Downes and Juliet Wege, who are providing editorial and imaging assistance, including capturing images of herbarium specimens and vouchered field photographs.

30/06/2026

Solanum diversiflorum
To celebrate NAIDOC week (5–12 July 2026), this month we feature the culturally significant bush tucker plant on Martu Country, Wamurla or Bush Tomato (Solanum diversiflorum).

Wamurla is a shrub growing to 15–50 cm high, forming rounded intricate bushes with deeply lobed leaves and fearsome prickles to 1 cm long on stems, leaves, peduncles and calyces. The inflorescence consists of one bisexual flower below a cyme of up to 20 male flowers. The flowers are mauve/purple, c. 2 cm in diameter, with 5 segments to the corolla and 5 yellow stamens.

The significance of Wamurla as a bush tucker plant is demonstrated by the Martu Traditional Owner practices of dispersing wild Solanum seed and traditional burning, as Wamurla come up especially well after fire.

Occurs from north-western W.A. north of the Tropic to the Kimberley, extending east to the Tanami Desert in N.T. usually on red sandy plains, often with gravelly capping, or on low stony hills, dominated by Triodia and Acacia.

Photo: A. Markey

30/06/2026

Come join the team at the WA Herbarium. Curator position just advertised.

Join us in our mission to promote biodiversity, conserve our valuable ecosystems, and provide engaging attractions that connect people with nature.

19/06/2026

Barely a day goes by without an Australian botanist accessing information in the Biodiversity Heritage Library, an invaluable treasure trove of botanic texts including an archive of journals from Australian herbaria (https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/collection/AustralianHerbariaJournals).

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jun/18/natural-world-digital-biodiversity-heritage-library-scientific-knowledge-free-access-aoe?CMP=share_btn_url

The Biodiversity Heritage Library is an invaluable online archive of historic texts on species living and lost supplied by the world’s leading museums and universities. Now its future is in doubt