In late May 2024, a Western Australian Museum team was back in the Pilbara to continue excavating Diprotodon skeletons – the largest marsupial to ever live. The two-week dig was again a partnership between the WA Museum, CITIC Pacific Mining and the Foundation for the WA Museum, with the support of the Traditional Owners, the Mardudhunera People.
On 24 May, the lucky winner of our “Win a Day Trip to the Diprotodon Dig” competition, Jared, his guest (his sister Lauren), and community members including students from Karratha Senior High School, St Luke's College Karratha and Clontarf Karratha Academy, joined the fossil experts to help dig up some of the fascinating megafauna fossils.
Expedition leader WA Museum's Dr Kenny Travouillon said the recovery work was the first step in unlocking the secrets of this megafauna species and the land on which they roamed: "Every single diprotodon skeleton we unearth tells us a story about how they died. They also allow us to understand how they lived in these ancient mangroves and how they used the land in the past, around eighty to one hundred thousand years ago. It's an extraordinary site, one of a kind in the world!"
The fossils will be relocated to Perth where they will be studied.
The Foundation for the WA Museum is proud to support this significant fieldtrip, and grateful to everyone involved in this project and making the day trip so special for our competition winners Jared and Lauren.
