The Extinction of Victoria's Megafauna

Come and share an evening delving into our mysterious past with palaeontologist Ben Francischelli, Heytesbury District Landcare Network and Friends of Bay of Islands Coastal Park.

Australia was once home to a menagerie of bizarre beasts, and the western Victorian coastline has an incredible concentration of fossils that chronicle their evolution.  From giant wombat-like marsupials the size of hippos that thundered across the southern savannah, to monstrous birds nicknamed the “demon ducks of doom", this is a story millions of years in the making. 

 From marsupial lions to Tasmanian devils, will be exploring their anatomy in one of Victoria's most important fossil areas. This talk will cover the catastrophic event that wiped out almost all of the Australian megafauna, the huge continental upheaval of the last 20,000 years and the recent extinctions that coincided with humans in the last few thousand years. 

 Ben will also showcase fossils he has found throughout Victoria over the last decade, that include fossil sharks and whales from his own fieldwork efforts, and introduce others to the incredible work of the citizen scientists he works with across Victoria.

This event is one of four project days Friends of Bay of Islands Coastal Park holds a year. They welcome new group members and volunteers. Contact Lynda Avery 0407 202 535 to find out more!

*Heytesbury District Landcare Network acknowledges the support of Coastcare Victoria and the Victorian Government.