Aquaria Animals

The laboratory was an environment where preserved specimens from all parts of Victoria were documented. Live animals were also nurtured here, enabling observation at a more considered pace.

Responsibility for living specimens fell primarily to Arthur Bartholomew, Frederick McCoy's lecture room assistant. At any one time he maintained an assortment of aquaria and Wardian cases (portable greenhouse-type structures) to support a variety of fish, frogs, reptiles, insects and molluscs.

Bartholomew's observations of the Tasmanian Blenny, Parablennius tasmanianus, were made on 20 June 1861 and captured both the personality and exact likeness of this engaging creature.

While McCoy's project was pointedly scientific, Bartholomew's drawings suggest a deeper curiosity about the animals he observed, often conveying real warmth and connection with the subject. The form of the Blenny, along with the translucency of its flesh and fins, is exquisitely expressed. On the page it appears still alive, almost 150 years after being painted.

Tasmanian Blennies are still common, and can be observed with mask and snorkel at rocky reefs around Port Philip Bay. However, they are now as likely to be seen with their heads and antennae peeking from a discarded bottle or can, as the crevices and shells used for shelter in earlier times.