Burnie Burrowing Crayfish

This illustration focuses on a Tasmanian endemic species, the Burnie Burrowing Crayfish, Engaeus yabbimunna. This species is known from only nine locations within a c. 130 square km area, in and nearby the city of Burnie in north-west Tasmania. Virtually none of its existing habitat is protected by conservation reserves and it’s estimated that its population has declined 55 – 90% since European settlement.

Wildlife illustrators don’t often choose species to illustrate that lack the sort of beauty which garners extensive admiration. As both an Illustrator and a formally qualified ecologist, my aim is to use my work to show people the sorts of amazing organisms that we have in Australia, that they may not already be familiar with. Illustration is used as a tool to show the intrinsic beauty of less commonly known organisms, and to convey their importance for conservation purposes.