“A lifetime producing natural history documentaries has taught me many things. Among them, three stand out. Firstly, the living planet is an utterly astonishing place, filled with marvellous creatures living remarkable lives. Secondly, people all over the world have an insatiable curiosity about nature. And thirdly, there is a great need to communicate the wonder, value, and diversity of the living world if we are to ensure that we can hand to future generations an environment as rich and marvellous as ours. I’ve also come to appreciate the work of the many scientists whose lives are dedicated to understanding nature.
And perhaps none more so than the taxonomists and biosystematists who have discovered, resolved, named, and described all the species I showcase in my documentaries. Taxonomists and biosystematists build the system, the species, and their relationships, on which much of biology, conservation, ecology—and nature documentaries—depend. We cannot properly grasp or understand the natural world without this taxonomic system. Every time I show the world a species and its life, I depend on the work of these scientists. And yet, in countries the world over, at the very time that many species are under greatest threat, funding and other resources allocated to the task of discovering, naming, and documenting nature are declining. Our taxonomic capacity is not adequate for the magnitude of the task. This has serious consequences for the future of life on Earth.”
Excerpt from foreword by Sir David Attenborough in A decadal plan for taxonomy and biosystematics in Australia and New Zealand 2018–2027.
Exploration of key concepts and processes that form the professional discipline of biosystematics. Introduction and familiarisation with advanced concepts in biosystematics, and knowledge of methods to manage biosystematics collections, to develop and make accessible biodiversity databases, and to study and characterise biodiversity. Interest in systematics of a specific taxonomic group is desirable.
Topics covered in seminars include: (1) the concepts of morphological taxonomy (past–present–future); (2) Māori biodiversity knowledge systems and perspectives; (3) biosecurity specific taxonomy; (4) biosystematics databases. This course provides an opportunity to review a wide range of systematics and taxonomic literature. Students will be provided a basic reading list for each seminar but are expected to find related literature to broaden their understanding. It is very important that all students complete the assigned reading and come prepared to present their ideas and discuss the topic. A participation mark reflects student engagement in these discussions.
There are four practical workshops that cover these topics: (1) botany taxonomy (keys); (2) taxonomic illustrations; (3) mini bioblitz; (4) curating, cataloguing and data-basing. You will also spend 50-60 hours in a collection (fungi, arthropods, botany, etc.) to develop knowledge in a particular taxonomic group and the management of the collection. The seminar presentation will highlight your experiences at the collection.
The review assignment allows you to focus on a specific biosystematics topic that interests you, to synthesise, analyse and critique the literature to produce a publication quality review. Key aims of the course are to introduce and familiarise you with advanced concepts in biosystematics, provide you with the knowledge of methods to manage biosystematics collections, and to study and characterise biodiversity.
Recommended reading before the course is Discovering Diversity: A decadal plan for taxonomy and biosystematics in Australia and New Zealand 2018–2028 (https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/assets/Uploads/Discovering-Biodiversity-decadal-plan.pdf).