27/03/2010 - "Wildlives" Photography Exhibitiion
On Saturday, 7 MUWA members travelled to the Victoria Park Centre for the Arts to have a private tour of Dr. Gary Beilby's "Wildlives" photographic exhibition. Gary's photos told the story of a number of wildlife species and aimed to draw attention to the impact that humans have on the world around us. Those who attended really appreciated Gary's expert knowledge of photographical techniques as he showed us his exhibition and look forward to using some of these tips for the MUWA wildlife photography competition in semester 2.
For more information on the exhibition visit the website, or to see more of Gary's work go to http://photos.beilby.com
23/03/2010 - Kanyana Post-Mortem Session
On Saturday, 7 MUWA members travelled to the Victoria Park Centre for the Arts to have a private tour of Dr. Gary Beilby's "Wildlives" photographic exhibition. Gary's photos told the story of a number of wildlife species and aimed to draw attention to the impact that humans have on the world around us. Those who attended really appreciated Gary's expert knowledge of photographical techniques as he showed us his exhibition and look forward to using some of these tips for the MUWA wildlife photography competition in semester 2.
For more information on the exhibition visit the website, or to see more of Gary's work go to http://photos.beilby.com
23/03/2010 - Kanyana Post-Mortem Session
The Wildlife Post-mortem sessions are run by Ruth Haight from Kanyana Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre. The animals were patients from Kanyana and have included parrots, waterbirds, raptors, bobtails, bandicoots, kangaroos and possums. You always get some interesting cases; previously we have had a a bobtail containing three embryos, and a night heron with undigested yabbies in its stomach! The session is interactive with usually 1-2 animals per group of three who try to determine the cause of death. As these sessions can be messy and hands-on, a lab coat, gumboots and dissection kit are essential. Ruth talks through each case in detail and is a fountain of wildlife knowledge!
Pictures Coming Soon!
21/03/2010 - Armadale Reptile Centre Field Trip
15 MUWA members visited The Armadale Reptile Centre where owner/manager Klaas provided a personal tour. First up was a journey through the emu pen to visit the Kangaroos, where Klaas talked about the basics of kangaroo health and nutrition and even demonstrated how to hold one if ever needed. Everyone was pretty happy to give some of the residents a good scratch too. Next, the two brother Dingoes proved to be quite the characters; luckily everyone passed the intense sniff-inspection! In the reptile section of the centre Klaas brought out a variety of local snakes, lizards and tortoises, focusing on those most likely to be encountered in a veterinary career. He also shared some interesting information about reptile biology, health and husbandry and demonstrated the correct way of holding and restraining. All in all, the morning at the reptile centre was a great blend of interactive hands on learning and cool facts about a great variety of Aussie natives.
2009 - Wildlife Photography Competition
The 2009 MUWA Wildlife Photography competition was held in the second semester of 2009 and was a great success. Over 75 photos taken by staff and students were entered and were presented for public judging in conjunction iwhith the Hills Hot Chocolate Social, which raised $100 to sponsor a turtle nest in Bali. Judging was also conducted by Dr. Gary Beilby, a vet at Wattlegrove Veterinary Hospital and wildlife photographer (you can see some of his work here). In the end both a Judges Choice and People's choice winner were announced and the winning entries can be see on our Wildlife Photography page.
2009 - Wilderness, Animals and Contemporary Art
2009's Artist in Residence, Dr. Perdita Phillips presented a talk about what motivates her work, including debates around the idea of wilderness and the idea of ecosystemic thinking through a number of her art projects including using the tammar wallaby radio tracking data, working with bowerbirds and sampling animal emotions.
2009 - VBMA and MUWA Careers Night
The combined VBMA and MUWA night started off with mixing and mingling over platters of delicious food. Five speakers spoke to students and guests about various aspects of career paths, especially those in a wildlife setting. Between them they covered how to ace your interview through to working in Kalimantan with orangutans and more!
Doctor Mark Eagleton from VetLink was the first to speak, and with his extensive experience in the veterinary field and matching people to jobs he provided need-to-know information on how excel in an interview. He also impressed the importance of finding a job that is right for you and what sort of question to ask to find out. Mark discussed the effect of the recent and current economical situations on the number of veterinary jobs: “There has been no noticeable change in the number of permanent positions offered,” he said.
Ever wanted to work in a zoo? Doctor Anna LeSouef wowed the audience with amazing pictures of dangerous and delightful creatures she sees every day. An employee of Perth Zoo, Anna has a chance to work up close and personal with animals that have always fascinated her and which present a unique challenge to treat. She walked us through a typical day at the zoo to whet our appetites before she let us in on the secret of how to achieve such an exciting and rewarding experience.
Doctor Gary Beilby is a vet of Wattle Grove Veterinary Hospital who has had a long and varied career. Disillusioned after his first years of work he decided to move into IT. After some ten years, however, veterinary science and his long-time hobby (or you might say profession!) of wildlife photography got the better of computers and Gary undertook a Masters in wildlife medicine and returned to practice. In his current position he sees the typical cats and dogs but also many, many cases of exotics and wildlife. The clinic works closely with Kanyana Wildlife Park to rehabilitate birds, marsupials and any animal in need – a truly rewarding career!
In the spirit of fascinating careers, our next speaker was no exception. Imagine studying a degree in veterinary science, travelling to Antarctica, then taking statistics, a Masters in science and a graduate diploma. Dr Judy Clarke has done all of these things, with time to spare to spend working with all manner of animals. She is currently working on a research project investigating the effect of translocation on the health, habitat use and general ecology of possums in the greater Perth region. This didn’t stop her from showing us several pictures of penguins hopping over weighbridges in the snow or the beautiful Antarctic scenery!
Some unlucky students may have to wait until fourth or fifth year before they meet Doctor Kristin Warren. This amazing woman manages field trips to South Africa, wildlife and zoo medicine clinical rotations at Perth Zoo, postgraduate studies in conservation medicine and more. And she is easily qualified! Her experience, including time working in a zoo, ranges from tiny bilbies to huge orangutans in the rehabilitation centres of Kalimantan. Passionate about wildlife, Kristin was only too eager to tell students all about the exciting places they could go.
This evening of careers and every kind of wildlife imaginable was one of a kind. Throughout the evening of seminars there was ample time for meaningful discussion with the speakers and other guests, as well as an excellent opportunity for networking! Thanks to our several speakers as well as our many guests (and the behind-the-scenes workers who prepared all the delicious food) for making this evening of information and inspiration a huge success.
