Natural History of the Northern Territory, Australia

The MAGNT is located in Darwin, the capital city of the Northern Territory of Australia. Our extensive Natural Sciences collections of animal, mineral and fossil specimens, from locations ranging from the interior deserts to the tropical northern Australian seas, represent the broad animal diversity found in the region. They are a permanent and accessible resource for scientific investigations into biodiversity and a basis for public exhibitions and education.

Fishes are the most diverse of all the vertebrate animal groups. There are over 400 species of fishes in Darwin Harbour alone. A selection of regionally occurring fish species have been cast in fibreglass for display in the Natural History Gallery.

The 300 kg Marsupial 'Rhinoceros' (Neohelos stirtoni) was one of the large, browsing herbivores that roamed parts of Australia some 12 million years ago, during the Miocene epoch. Well preserved fossilised bones from this, and other extinct species, are found at the Bullock Creek fossil deposit in the Northern Territory of Australia. Descendants of Neohelos stirtoni gradually became even larger in size, culminating in a species that grew to over 700kg (Diprotodon optatum). As humans dispersed across the world, these megafauna species were hunted which may have played a major role in their extinction.

A partial reconstruction of the 7 metre long fossilised Australian Ichthyosaur (Platypterygius longmani), based on several individuals from the 110 million year old Darwin Formation fossil beds and Queensland localities. Ichthyosaurs were air-breathing marine reptiles that resembled both modern fish and dolphins and gave birth to live young. They thrived in the inland sea that covered vast areas of Australia during the Cretaceous period, some 120-90 million years ago.

The Arnhem Leaf-nosed Bat (Hipposideros inornatus) is an insectivorous microbat that is known from only a few localities. It roosts in caves in very remote sandstone escarpment country in western Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia. At night it forages for food such as beetles, moths and cockroaches in nearby vegetated areas.

Great Bowerbirds (Ptilonorhynchus nuchalis) have highly evolved, complex courtship behaviour that involves the building and decoration of bowers. Males design and construct these elaborate structures to court females. The bowers are open or over-arching avenues of twigs and grass, aligned north-south. The floor and entrances are decorated with pale-coloured ornaments such as shells, bones, stones, glass and fruit. The walls of the bower may be painted with a mixture of saliva and plant material. Mating takes place in the bower. Females build a separate nest and rear the young on their own.

Southern Marsupial Moles (Notoryctes typhlops) are very distinctive animals with no external eyes or ears and silky golden fur. They are very well adapted for living underground. Their front legs are short and possess two enlarged spade-like claws and their marsupial pouch faces backwards. They dig temporary tunnels in the slopes and tops of sand dunes in the central Australian desert. They are carnivores and survive on a diet of insects such as ants and termites.

The Rainbow Bee-eater (Merops ornatus) is found throughout mainland Australia, except for in the desert areas. They are highly skilled at catching flying insects on the wing before carrying them back to a perch to eat. A breeding pair will dig a long tunnel into a sandy bank to use as a nest and raise their young.

The Nankeen Kestrel (Falco cenchroides) is the smallest falcon in Australia and one of the most commonly seen. They prefer open country such as grasslands and avoid dense forests. Small prey items such as lizards and insects may be eaten while flying but larger kills like rodents are taken back to a perch to consume.

The brightly coloured Blue-winged Kookaburra (Dacelo leachii) is a type of kingfisher, a carnivorous bird found only in northern Australia and New Guinea. They are efficient hunters, diving down onto their prey and then often beating their capture to death on a tree branch. Their loud and raucous call enables an observer to easily spot them in the wild.

The Chestnut Rail (Eulabeornis castaneoventris) lives only in the mangroves of northern Australia and the Aru Islands of Indonesia. They are wary birds and are more often heard than seen. They are territorial and hunt at low tide for small crabs and molluscs that live on the mud surface. Some Chestnut Rails use a hammerstone or anvil to break open the strong shells of their prey. A small pile or midden of broken shells is an indication of the bird's feeding activities.

Found in coastal areas of northern and eastern Australia, the Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus) can be seen performing aerial acrobatics during their mating displays. As a type of raptor (bird of prey), they feed on a variety of insects, fish and other small animals. They are expert at stealing from other fish-hunting birds by snatching prey in flight.

The Wedge-tailed Eagle (Aquila audax) is Australia's largest bird of prey and is the official bird emblem for the Northern Territory. It has a wingspan of up to 2.5 metres and is able to soar at high altitudes effortlessly for hours on end. Breeding pairs are territorial and live in the one area throughout the year, defending around their nest sites from other Wedge-tailed Eagles. They are excellent hunters of live prey but will also readily feed on fresh roadkill and other carcasses.

The Magpie Goose (Anseranas semipalmata) thrives in large flocks on the floodplains of the Northern Territory in Australia. During the wet season, male geese join with one or two females to build a floating platform. These are made by trampling reeds, and are used for courtship and resting. When a female is ready to lay eggs, they modify the platform into a floating bowl-like nest. Both the male and females share incubation, and often stand over the eggs to shade them from the hot sun. The chicks are well developed upon hatching. They spend only a day in the nest before venturing out with their parents to search for food. As the dry season progresses, the geese move from one drying swamp to another.

The Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) grows up to 44 cm long and has a rounded body that is covered in sharp spines, with fur in between. They are an unusual type of egg-laying mammal known as a monotreme that are only found in Australia and New Guinea. Echidnas are shy and move slowly and carefully but when disturbed they will quickly dig into the ground, leaving only their protective spines exposed.

Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) can be quite common along the tropical northern Australian coastline. Adults can be seen feeding in seagrass meadows in shallow water. They lay up to 100 eggs per season, when they come ashore on sandy beaches to dig their nests.

The Barramundi (Lates calcarifer) can grow to over 55 kgs and is found throughout the Indo-West Pacific, including northern Australia. They are protandrous hermaphrodites, which means they change sex from male to female during their lifetimes. After spawning several times as a mature male, the Barramundi moves from freshwater habitats to saltwater river mouths, triggering a change in sex. They are a popular angling and eating species in the tropics.

Witchetty Moths (Endoxyla leucomochla) produce a fat, white caterpillar or grub. The grub eats into the woody roots of the Witchetty bush, feeding on the root sap until it reaches a length of about 7 cm. After pupating, the adult moth emerges with a wingspan of about 16 cm. It lacks any functional feeding organs and lives for a few days on its fat reserves before breeding and then dying.

The Giant Timor Sea Hermit Crab (Tisea grandis) is the largest of the marine hermit crabs and is found in the Timor Sea to the north of Australia. Like most hermit crabs it has a long, soft, spirally curved abdomen (not visible in this image) instead of the hard, calcified abdomen seen in related crustaceans. The vulnerable abdomen is protected from predators by a salvaged empty seashell carried by the hermit crab, into which its whole body can retract. As the hermit crab grows it must find a larger shell to move into and abandons the previous one.

Giant Clams (Tridacna gigas) are the largest living bivalve molluscs. A pair of shells can reach a weight of 260 kg and a length of 1.4 metres. Giant Clams live in shallow water on coral reefs. They rest with their shells partially open, so that their body tissues are exposed to light. Giant Clams farm colonies of microscopic organisms (zooxanthellae) in the tissues that line their shells. They also have lense-like organs in their outer skin (mantle) which allows sunlight to reach the zooxanthellae. These organisms provide some of the nutrients needed by the clam to survive.