The Sydney Botanic Gardens has completed a five-year project to digitize its entire collection of over one million plant specimens, making it the first searchable image archive of its kind in the Pacific region. The archive can be searched using various criteria, including scientific name, collection date, collector, and location.
For five years, scientists from the Botanic Gardens of Sydney have been painstakingly archiving and digitising its entire collection of more than one million plants, from specimens collected by celebrated Indigenous painter Albert Namatjira to plants gathered on Captain Cook’s first voyage. Their efforts have delivered the first searchable image archive of specimens from the Pacific region, via the largest mass digitisation of a natural history collection in the southern hemisphere.
The collection can now be found using a scientific name, collection date, collector and location, as well as other criteria. The search result will reveal images of the plants and collection data linked to the specimen. About 4000 images were taken daily during the five-year project to transform the plant specimens into high-resolution images. Brett Summerell, the chief scientist at the Botanic Gardens, describes the vast online public archive as a cross between a museum and a library that “documents plants through space and time”. “We have decolonised the collection,” Summerell said. “As people are starting to see the impact of land clearing and climate change, we can look at changes in flora over time and have proper documentation on the impact of such things as climate change. Indigenous communities will also be able to view specimens and look at flora on Country.”Advertisement Summerell said fashion designers and artists wanted access to the collection for a range of artistic purposes, from using the plant images for printing fabrics, as well as digital manipulation of images. “Scientists across the country and the world can delve into our collection, but we also have had a lot of interest from people … who take the digital images and turn them into some really artistic works,” he said. The collection includes more than 800 specimens collected by botanists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander on Captain Cook’s first voyage to the Pacific in 1770
Botany Digitization Pacific Region Climate Change Indigenous Knowledge
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Cairns Botanic Gardens orchid collection being rebuilt after attack by tiny weevilAn orchid weevil made its way into the Cairns Botanic Gardens undetected until plants began to show signs of distress, but by then almost the whole collection was infested.
Read more »
Volunteers preserving plants at Australian National Botanic Gardens by squishing one bug at a timeFor about two hours every week, the Squishy Vols, as they're known, meet for some meditative manual labour to squish bugs and scrape scale from plants in the glasshouses at the Australian National Botanic Gardens in Canberra.
Read more »
Sydney Ice Dogs, Sydney Bears withdraw from 2025 Australian Ice Hockey LeagueA rink renovation has caused both Sydney teams in the national league to withdraw from the 2025 season, prompting calls for more investment to bolster the number of appropriate rinks for professional play.
Read more »
Thousands of Flying Foxes Gather in Adelaide's Botanic ParkThousands of grey-headed flying foxes gather in Adelaide's Botanic Park each evening, creating a spectacular nightly fly-out ritual. Associate Professor Wayne Boardman, a wildlife veterinarian and flying fox researcher, explains the fascinating behavior of these megabats, dispelling misconceptions and highlighting their importance.
Read more »
Veggie gardens an oasis from chaos of life for two outback mumsAmid the chaos of motherhood and everyday life, two mums find solace and healing in their gardens.
Read more »
Sydney Gridlocked by Crash and BreakdownHeavy traffic brought Sydney to a standstill Wednesday morning due to a car crash and a breakdown near the Sydney Harbour Tunnel. Live Traffic NSW also warned of changes to traffic conditions on the Sydney Harbour Bridge due to maintenance and upgrades. The Anzac Bridge also experienced heavy traffic, with delays reported from Drummoyne to Barangaroo and Rozelle. A crash on the M1 Pacific Motorway in North Sydney caused further congestion.
Read more »