Presented by the Auckland Museum Institute and Auckland Botanical Society, join Dr Jessica Beever for the 2026 Lucy Cranwell Lecture.
TUES 27 OCT, 6.30PM - 7.30PM
TE MATA TAIRONGOAUDITORIUM, LEVEL 2
BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL, PAY WHAT YOU CAN
Dr Lucy Cranwell was the inaugural Curator of Botany at Auckland War Memorial Museum, appointed in 1929 when she was only 21 years old. She was New Zealand’s first female museum curator and became an internationally renowned scientist. As a war-bride, Lucy Cranwell moved permanently to the United States in 1944, but throughout her life retained a keen interest in Auckland Museum and our broader botanical scene, making many generous donations.
Her pioneering research in palynology, the study of pollen grains preserved in peat bogs, meant that her interest in mosses centred on the bog moss Sphagnum. In this lecture, bryologist Dr Jessica Beever will link Sphagnum to stories from the wider world of these beautiful and fascinating plants, the mosses.
About Jessica Beever
Dr Jessica Beever (Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Mutunga, Te Āti Awa, and Pākehā) has researched mosses for most of her scientific career, always with a keen interest in popularising these plants with students and the wider public, as well as in their conservation. Her significant publications include a greatly expanded “Mosses of New ZeaIand” (Otago University Press), many regional accounts, and numerous taxonomic publications, especially in the families Fissidentaceae and Pottiaceae.In 2024 she received theAllan Mere for “Meritorious Service to Botany in New Zealand” and is currently a Research Associate of the Bioeconomy Science Institute/Maiangi Taiao.
For this event we’re inviting you to set the price for your ticket yourself and pay what you can to participate. You can enter any amount and select the number of tickets. Each ticket will be charged at the selected amount.
The Auckland Museum Institute is a learned society, is the Auckland Branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand Te Apārangi and has a long history of partnership with the Museum. Any contribution you can make will support both the Institute’s own events and also Museum initiatives, promote knowledge-sharing and research, and provide continued care, restoration and use of the Museum's collections.