Ken McNamara: The Secret Lives of Western Australian Rocks

Ferricrete pisoliths formed by the intense tropical weathering of granitic and gneissic rocks, Bedfordale, Western Australia. Pygmy Sundew (Drosera pulchella) rosette about 15 mm across.

Rocks are keepers of some of the secrets of Earth’s long history – past environments, changing climates and the pulse of life over billions of years. Even the most seemingly insignificant rock can tell us much about the history of this planet, opening vistas of ancient worlds of ice, raging floods, strange unbreathable atmospheres, and prehistoric worlds teeming with life.

Remarkably, many types of rocks owe their existence to living organisms – from the bodies of dead animals, to those formed from the remains of plants or even created by the activity of fungi, bacteria and viruses.

In his talk, Professor McNamara will concentrate on such rocks in Western Australia, made from or created by once living organisms – from pea-gravels to Pinnacles; from banded ironstone to the Bunda Cliff limestones of the Nullarbor Plain – and much more. There might even be some photos of the plants that grow on the rocks!