Jean Weiner
Research Associate
Like many others, my interest in entomology began early. To gain my 'naturalist' badge in Boy Scouts, I began collecting a variety of small creatures, preserving them in methylated spirits or setting them out with sewing pins. As my fascination grew, insect specimens proved far more interesting and inspiring than the stamps I was amassing in trying to emulate my father's collection. Wherever I went, my butterfly net and satchel full of tins, jars, forceps and envelopes also went. Annual school holidays were very profitable, and when old enough to drive, I spent weeks at a time collecting alone in the bush. A year off mid-university saw me in Papua New Guinea, ostensibly working for an architect, but my heart was in the jungles, water courses and by-roads of the ranges surrounding Port Moresby.
Twenty years elapsed. The pressure of 'real' life had meant no insect collecting. All I had collected was experience as a pianist/actor, and a few degrees (a combined Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and philosophy of science, then a Masters in fine arts).
On a trip through Indonesia in 1991, I found myself in Sulawesi at Bantimurung waterfall (one of Alfred Russel Wallace's favourite haunts) paying a few rupiah for some butterflies that the local boys had collected to make pocket money. The lure of nature proved irresistible, and soon my collection was properly curated in museum-style cabinets. Since then I have been travelling extensively through South-East Asia, my net once more in hand. Chance led to an introduction to the Australian Museum Entomology collection manager and soon I was installed as the honorary curator of foreign Lepidoptera, putting taxonomic order into a massive collection that had been languishing even longer than my own. I have since also participated in field excursions, curated foreign beetles and even translated numerous French scientific texts. I feel privileged to have been appointed a Research Associate of this Museum.
Oleander Hawk Moths (adults), Daphnis nerii, collected in Malaysia. This is probably the easternmost limit of this moth species, which is present in Asia, Europe and Africa (it does not occur in Australia). Photo: J Weiner.
Oleander Hawk Moths (larvae), Daphnis nerii, collected in Malaysia. Photo: J Weiner.
Research Interests
- Lepidoptera (Moths and butterflies)
- Coleoptera (beetles)
My major areas of scientific interest are in the taxonomy of Lepidoptera (and to a lesser extent Coleoptera), and the diversity of wing and larval patterns and colours. The myriad patterns and colour combinations provide the inspiration for my work as a successful abstract artist. Most recently I completed a 12-month artist residency in Malaysia with works based specifically on Malaysian insect fauna.
Contact details
email: jeanweiner@yahoo.com.au
phone: (+612) 9320 6221
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