Dr Matt Rayner is a child of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, having been born and raised beside and on the Waitematā Harbour. He has also traveled widely with his research, which focuses on Aotearoa and the Pacific.
As a Senior Researcher in the Natural Sciences Department, Matt specialises in collections-based and field research, as well as public science communication on the fauna of New Zealand. Like the rest of his team, he is passionate about raising public awareness of the decline of New Zealand’s biodiversity—both on land and at sea—and the importance of Museum collections in telling these stories.
Photo by Kevin Parker.
Research Interests and Projects
Matt's research specialty lies in the fields of avian and conservation ecology, animal behavior, and evolution. He works closely with colleagues at the University of Auckland, where he is a research associate, and has active studies ongoing in the Hauraki Gulf and on New Zealand’s offshore islands.
A range of national and international projects occupies his time, including:
Studying the effects of ecosystem change on New Zealand bird communities through isotopic analysis of contemporary and museum specimens, as well as through more traditional field survey techniques.
Investigating the biology of poorly known threatened seabirds such as terns, cormorants, storm petrels, and shearwaters.
Researching the phylogeography and taxonomy of tube-nosed seabirds.
Advocating for marine protection in the Hauraki Gulf as a means of achieving holistic land-sea protection for this declining ecosystem.
Matt supports a range of students in a co-supervisory role and welcome those considering conducting their own research to reach out and share ideas.
For a full list of Matt’s publications, click here.
Blogs by Matt
Auckland Museum holds thousands of moa bones gathered over more than a century, and recently, one box of bones has helped unlock a bigger story about how moa once lived across Aotearoa.