Andrew Amey

Biodiversity & Geosciences

Queensland Museum Kurilpa

Dr Andrew Amey is the Collection Manager of Amphibians and Reptiles, Herpetology at Queensland Museum. He is responsible for preparation and registration of new specimens, caring for the collection and facilitating access by researchers and members of the public.

Andrew’s research focuses on skinks and geckos, principally taxonomy (the discovery of new species). In collaboration with Patrick Couper, Curator of Herpetology, a key focus of Andrew’s research has been the rainforests of Queensland, especially the leaftail geckos and the Australian Ring-tailed Geckos (Cyrtodactylus), highlighting the tremendous diversity of these habitats that is still to be discovered.

Current projects include the taxonomy of the skink genus Lerista, an endemic Australian lineage that has undergone spectacular speciation, with 97 species currently recognised. The genus includes the Retro Slider (Lerista allanae) a species found only in central Queensland, which was thought to be extinct until its rediscovery in 2009, when a specimen was donated to Queensland Museum. Andrew is working on a three-year research project to sample this genus more extensively throughout Queensland. It is expected several species new to science will be uncovered through this research.

Other research interests include the ecology of invasive species, especially the Asian House Gecko, now nearly ubiquitous in urban Queensland, and the taxonomy and distribution of Australian sea snakes.