Museum collections hold the key to discovering and identifying species previously unknown to science.

A previously unrecognised species of koala has been identified from fossils held in the Western Australian Museum collection – the first new koala species discovered in Western Australia.

Koala fossils from WA have been known for more than a century and were long assumed to belong to the modern east-coast species, Phascolarctos cinereus. However, new research undertaken by WA Museum scientists has revealed these fossils represent a distinctly different species: Phascolarctos sulcomaxilliaris. The discovery offers new insights into koala evolution and the environmental changes that shaped Australia’s ancient landscapes.

Join Helen Ryan, a member of the Museum’s research team behind this discovery, to learn more about this remarkable species and what sets it apart from modern koalas.