Meet the Museum: Ancient Architects - Australia’s Trapdoor Spiders
5.45pm for a 6pm start.
Standard | $10
Concession| $8
Junior | $8
Friend Members receive 15% off ticket pricing for this event
Site access information
WA Museum Boola Bardip is fully accessible. Call 1300 134 081 for assistance. Accessible resources and programs >
Trapdoor spiders are among Australia's most ancient and remarkable animals, yet most people will never see one.
Hidden beneath our feet, trapdoor spiders build intricate burrows, live for decades and often spend their entire lives within a tiny patch of country.
Join WA Museum arachnologist Jeremy Wilson for an informal journey through his life and work, from his early fascination with spiders to fieldwork across Australia and around the world in museum collections, DNA sequencing and the discovery of hundreds of species previously unknown to science.
Hear why Western Australia is a global hotspot for trapdoor spider diversity, why some species occur in areas no larger than a suburb or hill and how naming and mapping these hidden animals can help us understand and protect our State's biodiversity.
Meet the Curator
Dr Jeremy D. Wilson
Jeremy Wilson is the Curator of Arachnids and Myriapods at the Western Australian Museum. He is an arachnologist who specialises in the taxonomy, evolution and conservation of Western Australia’s trapdoor spiders. His path into museum science has taken him from university research in Queensland, to working in Argentina and Chile, and across much of Australia through major biodiversity surveys and taxonomic projects.
Jeremy's research has helped reveal an extraordinary and largely hidden diversity of Australian trapdoor spiders, including the description of more than 160 new species. After taking up the position of Curator at the WA museum, he is helping to document our largely un-named trapdoor spider fauna so that we can study and protect these mysterious spiders.
Meet the Museum
Are you curious about the fascinating world behind the scenes at the Museum? This monthly program delves into the less visible parts of the Museum’s work, as scientists, researchers, historians and curators share their expertise and passions. Discover more talks at the Museum.
Access information
WA Museum Boola Bardip is a fully accessible venue.
If you're attending this event and would like to request Auslan interpretation please contact reception@museum.wa.gov.au or call 1300 134 081 a minimum of five working days before the event to allow time for us to make these arrangements.
