# Whitley Awards (Australia)

The Whitley Awards have been awarded annually since 1979 by the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales (RZSNSW). They commemorate Gilbert Whitley, an eminent Australian ichthyologist, and are presented for outstanding publications, either printed or electronic, that contain new information about the fauna of the Australasian region.
For a publication to receive a Whitley Award it must either make a significant contribution of new information, present a new synthesis of existing information, or present existing information in a more acceptable form. All texts must contain a significant proportion of information that relates directly to Australasian zoology. Moreover, all submissions must have been published within 18 months of the awards entry date.
A presentation ceremony is held each year in September at the Australian Museum in Sydney when the authors and publishers of the winning titles receive their awards.

## Awards

Certificates of Commendation may be awarded to publications judged as the best in various categories including, but not limited to, illustrated publications, textbooks, field guides, reference works, historical zoology, periodicals, handbooks, children’s publications, CD-ROMs, limited editions and videos.

### Whitley Medal

The Whitley Medal may be awarded to a publication deemed to be of superior quality that makes a landmark contribution to the understanding, content or dissemination of zoological knowledge. The Whitley Medal is the top award in zoological publishing in Australia and is not necessarily awarded every year, though sometimes more than one medal may be awarded.
Whitley Medal Winners: 2000 to 2024 :
| Year | Title | Author | Publisher |
| 2024 | Mammals of the South-west Pacific | Tyrone Lavery and Tim Flannery | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2023 | Prehistoric Australasia | Michael Archer, Suzanne Hand, John Long, Trevor Worthy and Peter Schouten (illustrator) | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2022 | Australian Deserts: Ecology and Landscapes | Steve Morton | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2020 | Hawkmoths of Australia: Identification, Biology and Distribution | Maxwell Moulds, James Tuttle and David Lane | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2019 | Zobi and the Zoox: A Story of Coral Bleaching | Ailsa Wild, Aviva Reed, Briony Barr & Gregory Crocetti | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2018 | Australian Echinoderms: Biology, Ecology and Evolution | Maria Byrne & Timothy O’Hara | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2017 | The Australian Bird Guide | Peter Menkhorst, Danny Rogers, Rohan Clarke, Jeff Davies, Peter Marsack & Kim Franklin | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2016 | Handbook of the Mammals of the World - Volume 5 Monotremes and Marsupials The Fishes of New Zealand Volumes 1-4 | Don E. Wilson and Russell Mittermeier (editors) Clive Roberts, Andrew Stewart and Carl Struthers (editors) | Lynx Edicions Te Papa Press |
| 2015 | Biology and Evolution of Crocodylians | Gordon Grigg, David Kirshner | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2014 | Tadpoles and Frogs of Australia | Marion Anstis | New Holland Publishers |
| 2013 | Field Guide to the Dragonflies of New Guinea / Buku Panduan Lapangan Capung Jarum untuk Wilayah New Guinea (Brachytron vol. 16) | Vincent Kalkman, Albert Orr | Nederlandse Vereniging voor Libellenstudie |
| 2013 | Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes | Paul Humphries, Keith Walker (editors) | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2012 | No medal awarded | | |
| 2011 | Australian Land Snails Volume 1: A Field Guide to Eastern Australian Species | John Stanisic, Michael Shea, Darryl Potter, Owen Giffiths | Bioculture Press |
| 2010 | A Guide to the Beetles of Australia | George Hangay, Paul Zborowski | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2009 | Boom & Bust: Bird Stories for a Dry Country | Libby Robin, Robert Heinsohn, Leo Joseph (editors) | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2008 | A Fragile Balance: The Extraordinary Story of Australian Marsupials | Christopher Dickman, Rosemary Woodford Ganf (illustrator) | Craftsman House |
| 2007 | Australia’s Mammal Extinctions: A 50,000 Year History | Chris Johnson | Cambridge University Press |
| 2006 | Adelaide: Nature of a City - The Ecology of a Dynamic City From 1836 to 2036 | Christopher Daniels, Catherine Tait (editors) | Biocity |
| 2005 | Life of Marsupials | Hugh Tyndale-Biscoe | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2005 | Freshwater Fishes of North-Eastern Australia | Brad Pusey, Mark Kennard, Angela Arthington | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2004 | Australian Mammals: Biology and Captive Management | Stephen Jackson | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2004 | Magnificent Mihirungs: The Colossal Flightless Birds of the Australian Dreamtime | Peter Murray, Patricia Vickers-Rich | Indiana University Press |
| 2004 | Beneath Southern Seas: Sharks, Rays, Seahorses & Other Fishes of Australia's Unique Coast [videorecording] | George Evatt (Director) | Coral Sea Television |
| 2003 | The Waterbug Book: A Guide to the Freshwater Macroinvertebrates of Temperate Australia | John Gooderham, Edward Tsyrlin | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2002 | Tadpoles of South-Eastern Australia: A Guide With Key | Marion Anstis | New Holland Publishers |
| 2001 | The Last Tasmanian Tiger: The History and Extinction of the Thylacine | Robert Paddle | Cambridge University Press |
| 2001 | Butterflies of Australia: Their Identification, Biology and Distribution | Michael F. Braby | CSIRO Publishing |
| 2000 | Marsupial Nutrition | Ian Hume | Cambridge University Press |