Dr Vanessa Finney,an archivist with the Australian Museum,said the contribution of his wife,Elizabeth,an artist,illustrator and mother to six children,and the First Nations guides,was often overlooked.
A new multimedia travelling exhibition,The Birds of Australia Storybox,debuting on Wednesday in Newcastle,will trace the footsteps of Gould and his wife Elizabeth on their birding expedition across NSW nearly 200 years ago.
It includes an interactive storytelling cube,created by ESEM Projects,that features the songs of the birds in those regions,details of which birds are vulnerable,and the significance of birds to local Indigenous groups.
The bird’s calls were changed slightly on the cube because a soundscape in a public place may have confused the birds,said Finney. But visitors can listen to the bird’s real song via a QR code or on the museum’s website.
Gould was at the forefront of evolutionary theory,and had a deep understanding of the natural world,said Finney.
“Without Elizabeth’s artistic talents,John Gould’s early publications would likely have failed,” she said.