“The latest news on the evolution of our Australian crocodiles”

Dr Michael Stein
Palaeoscientist
Archer Palaeontology Laboratory
UNSW Sydney

Date: Thursday, 15 October 2026, 6.30–7.30 pm AEST
Venue: RSL Mittagong, Carrington Room
Entry: Members, $5; Non-members, $10 (please note: cashless payments only)
All are welcome

Summary: The dinosaur extinction 66 million years ago, in the period known as K-PG, was later followed by the evolution of the Australian-unique branch of crocodiles. In his earlier lecture to the RSNSW Southern Highlands branch in June 2026, Dr Michael Stein intrigued his audience with data from Australian-New Zealand palaeontology which revealed the labyrinthine extent of crocodile evolution in the Southern hemisphere following the huge extinction event. It was then that Australia’s unique branch began to make a seemingly un-crocodilian push back onto the land. Dr Stein’s latest research with new anatomical insights will be the focus of his return lecture. 

Dr Michael Stein is a palaeoscientist with the Archer Palaeontology Laboratory at the University of New South Wales. Both his PhD (2019) and current research with UNSW focus on the remarkable crocodile fauna preserved at the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, along with crocodile paleo-communities across northern to central Australia. This research incorporates studies of locomotory evolution, biomechanics, geometric morphometrics and histology in pursuit of a better understanding of ecomorphological plasticity, particularly niche diversification among predatory hunting ecologies and the capacity of lineages to reposition in trophic webs.

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