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Western Australian Museum

In research, Western Australian Museum stands highest in Life Sciences (#3,396 of 11,023 worldwide), Physical Sciences (#7,498 of 17,446 worldwide) and Environmental Science (#2,785 of 5,407 worldwide), over all time.

museum.wa.gov.auROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022-now
#19,929
of 22,385 · #8,940 all time
Rank in Australia
#231
of 270
Research works
824
▼ 21% vs 2018-21
Citations
15k
17.8 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
9.0%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.04×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
39%
world 40%
International
28%
world 18%
Western Australian Museum

What is Western Australian Museum known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, over all time, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorks
Life SciencesDomain #3,396 of 11,023 7.0%197
Physical SciencesDomain #7,498 of 17,446 6.7%451
Environmental ScienceField #2,785 of 5,407 6.0%224
Earth and Planetary SciencesField #1,163 of 2,224 6.3%168
Social SciencesDomain #10,837 of 14,833 6.4%151

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Western Australian Museum sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no average mark, because the average differs by field (from about 6% in Dentistry to 21% in Economics).

Which fields of science does Western Australian Museum work in?

In 2022-now, 51% of research at Western Australian Museum is in Physical Sciences, 26% in Life Sciences. Its largest fields are Environmental Science (27%), Earth and Planetary Sciences (18%), Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (14%). It does 1.8× the world's share of Life Sciences.

Physical Sciences: 42 fractional works · 50.8% of its workEnvironmental Science: 22 fractional works · 27.0% of its workEcology: 10 fractional works · 12.6% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 6 fractional works · 6.9% of its workNature and Landscape Conservation: 4 fractional works · 4.7% of its workEcological Modeling: 2 fractional works · 2.0% of its workPollution: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 15 fractional works · 18.2% of its workPaleontology: 8 fractional works · 10.1% of its workOceanography: 5 fractional works · 5.7% of its workAtmospheric Science: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workEarth-Surface Processes: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workGeophysics: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSpace and Planetary Science: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workGeology: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEngineering: 1 fractional works · 1.5% of its workOcean Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workMechanical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workChemistry: 1 fractional works · 1.4% of its workOrganic Chemistry: 1 fractional works · 0.9% of its workAnalytical Chemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 1 fractional works · 1.3% of its workAstronomy and Astrophysics: 1 fractional works · 1.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workMathematics: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workGeometry and Topology: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workMaterials Science: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workMaterials Chemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workComputer Science: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workLife Sciences: 22 fractional works · 26.0% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 12 fractional works · 14.1% of its workGenetics: 7 fractional works · 8.2% of its workMolecular Biology: 4 fractional works · 4.3% of its workBiotechnology: 1 fractional works · 1.2% of its workCell Biology: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 9 fractional works · 11.3% of its workEcology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics: 5 fractional works · 6.3% of its workInsect Science: 2 fractional works · 2.9% of its workAquatic Science: 1 fractional works · 1.8% of its workPlant Science: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workNeuroscience: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workCellular and Molecular Neuroscience: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workSocial Sciences: 14 fractional works · 16.8% of its workArts and Humanities: 9 fractional works · 10.4% of its workArcheology: 5 fractional works · 5.5% of its workHistory: 1 fractional works · 1.6% of its workMusic: 1 fractional works · 1.2% of its workMuseology: 1 fractional works · 1.0% of its workClassics: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workConservation: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSocial Sciences: 4 fractional works · 4.3% of its workCultural Studies: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workSociology and Political Science: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workGeography, Planning and Development: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workAnthropology: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workGender Studies: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPolitical Science and International Relations: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workUrban Studies: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPsychology: 1 fractional works · 1.0% of its workSocial Psychology: 1 fractional works · 0.9% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workDecision Sciences: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workStatistics, Probability and Uncertainty: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workHealth Sciences: 5 fractional works · 6.4% of its workMedicine: 4 fractional works · 4.8% of its workEpidemiology: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workPulmonary and Respiratory Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workOrthopedics and Sports Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPharmacology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workHematology: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSurgery: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workBiochemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workCritical Care and Intensive Care Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEndocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 1.1% of its workVeterinary: 1 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSmall Animals: 1 fractional works · 0.9% of its workEquine: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workDentistry: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workOral Surgery: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workHealth Professions: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workNursing: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workALL ITS WORKWesternAustralian Museum83fractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences26%Physical Sciences51%Health Sciences6%Social Sciences17%

Each ring splits the one inside it: the four domains of science, their fields, their subfields. Size is fractional works in 2022-now. Every slice is a page; the interactive view zooms down to single topics and colours each by how much more of it this institution does than the world.

Its 4 domains and 24 fields, with their numbers
    1. Environmental Science2227.0%
    2. Earth and Planetary Sciences1518.2%
    3. Engineering11.5%
    4. Chemistry11.4%
    5. Physics and Astronomy11.3%
    6. Mathematics00.6%
    7. Materials Science00.6%
    8. Computer Science00.2%
    1. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology1214.1%
    2. Agricultural and Biological Sciences911.3%
    3. Neuroscience00.3%
    4. Immunology and Microbiology00.2%
    5. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics00.1%
    1. Arts and Humanities910.4%
    2. Social Sciences44.3%
    3. Psychology11.0%
    4. Decision Sciences00.4%
    5. Economics, Econometrics and Finance00.4%
    6. Business, Management and Accounting00.2%
    1. Medicine44.8%
    2. Veterinary11.1%
    3. Dentistry00.2%
    4. Health Professions00.2%
    5. Nursing00.1%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 2.38× its world share, 9 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 2.65× its world share, 12 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.19× its world share, 0 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.20× its world share, 0 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.23× its world share, 0 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemistry: 0.90× its world share, 1 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.03× its world share, 0 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 11.63× its world share, 15 worksEarth and Planetary …Engineering: 0.10× its world share, 1 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 5.43× its world share, 22 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.16× its world share, 0 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.49× its world share, 0 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 0.60× its world share, 1 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.41× its world share, 0 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.07× its world share, 0 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.25× its world share, 4 worksMedicineNursing: 0.16× its world share, 0 worksNursingVeterinary: 8.05× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 3.61× its world share, 9 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.05× its world share, 0 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 0.42× its world share, 0 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.19× its world share, 0 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.34× its world share, 1 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.34× its world share, 4 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Earth and Planetary Sciences, 11.6×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 24 fields, with their numbers
  1. Earth and Planetary Sciences11.63×15 works
  2. Veterinary8.05×1 works
  3. Environmental Science5.43×22 works
  4. Arts and Humanities3.61×9 works
  5. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology2.65×12 works
  6. Agricultural and Biological Sciences2.38×9 works
  7. Chemistry0.90×1 works
  8. Physics and Astronomy0.60×1 works
  9. Mathematics0.49×0 works
  10. Decision Sciences0.42×0 works
  11. Dentistry0.41×0 works
  12. Psychology0.34×1 works
  13. Social Sciences0.34×4 works
  14. Medicine0.25×4 works
  15. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics0.23×0 works
  16. Neuroscience0.20×0 works
  17. Immunology and Microbiology0.19×0 works
  18. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.19×0 works
  19. Materials Science0.16×0 works
  20. Nursing0.16×0 works
  21. Engineering0.10×1 works
  22. Health Professions0.07×0 works
  23. Business, Management and Accounting0.05×0 works
  24. Computer Science0.03×0 works

Who are the top researchers at Western Australian Museum?

Ranked on the quality score, Patricia Vinnicombe, William F. Humphreys and J. L. Bannister lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Western Australian Museum.

  1. 1 Patricia Vinnicombe Australia · #839,683 worldwide 834 citations · 27 works
  2. 2 William F. Humphreys Australia · #946,354 worldwide 7.6k citations · 222 works
  3. 3 J. L. Bannister Australia · #1,886,755 worldwide 1.4k citations · 53 works
  4. 4 Neil A. North Australia · #2,081,993 worldwide 660 citations · 32 works
  5. 5 Alex. Wm. Milligan Australia · #2,186,002 worldwide 224 citations · 31 works
  6. 6 Kenny J. Travouillon Australia · #2,281,014 worldwide 1.8k citations · 133 works
  7. 7 George W. Kendrick Australia · #2,317,861 worldwide 683 citations · 26 works
  8. 8 Barry Wilson Australia · #2,673,413 worldwide 581 citations · 34 works
  9. 9 Kenneth J. McNamara Australia · #2,720,291 worldwide 3.4k citations · 111 works
  10. 10 Mark A. Cowan Australia · #2,763,274 worldwide 472 citations · 26 works
All ranked researchers at Western Australian Museum

What are the most cited papers from Western Australian Museum?

The most cited paper from Western Australian Museum is "Freshwater Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Biogeographic Units for Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation" (Robin Abell et al., 2008), with 2,061 citations. Next come "Marine Biodiversity Hotspots and Conservation Priorities for Tropical Reefs" (1,707) and "The Impact of Conservation on the Status of the World’s Vertebrates" (1,548).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 Freshwater Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Biogeographic Units for Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation Robin Abell et al. · BioScience Open access May 2008 2,061
2 Marine Biodiversity Hotspots and Conservation Priorities for Tropical Reefs Callum M. Roberts, Colin J. McClean, John E. N. Veron et al. · Science 15 Feb 2002 1,707
3 The Impact of Conservation on the Status of the World’s Vertebrates Michael P. Hoffmann et al. · Science Open access174 authors 26 Oct 2010 1,548
4 Climate-driven regime shift of a temperate marine ecosystem Thomas Wernberg et al. · Science 7 Jul 2016 1,429
5 Assessing the complex sponge microbiota: core, variable and species-specific bacterial communities in marine sponges Susanne Schmitt, Peter Tsai, James J. Bell et al. · The ISME Journal Open access 13 Oct 2011 557
All 60 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Western Australian Museum?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Biogeography, Population Dynamics, Molecular Phylogeny, Invasive Species, DNA Barcoding and Evolution.

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's

Size is fractional works in 2022-now in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Climate Change13▲ 5.6×24 topics
  2. Biodiversity12▲ 19×14 topics
  3. Biogeography11▲ 46×13 topics
  4. Population Dynamics10▲ 45×7 topics
  5. Molecular Phylogeny8▲ 56×9 topics
  6. Invasive Species7▲ 21×13 topics
  7. DNA Barcoding7▲ 49×9 topics
  8. Evolution7▲ 32×11 topics
  9. Conservation7▲ 19×14 topics
  10. Phylogenetic Analysis7▲ 26×10 topics
  11. Ecology6▲ 43×6 topics
  12. Ecosystem Functioning5▲ 31×4 topics
  13. Phylogeny5▲ 37×10 topics
  14. Benthic Communities4▲ 86×2 topics
  15. Marine Biodiversity4▲ 86×2 topics
  16. Marine Ecosystems4▲ 91×2 topics
  17. Conservation Biology4▲ 46×3 topics
  18. Species Delimitation4▲ 102×3 topics
  19. Biodiversity Loss4▲ 76×3 topics
  20. Deep-Sea Ecology4▲ 141×1 topic
  21. Estuarine Quality4▲ 141×1 topic
  22. Adaptation3▲ 14×2 topics
  23. Groundwater3▲ 44×3 topics
  24. Habitat Fragmentation3▲ 19×4 topics
  25. Trophic Cascades3▲ 44×2 topics
  26. Cavefish3▲ 202×1 topic
  27. Fisheries3▲ 90×2 topics
  28. Subterranean3▲ 202×1 topic
  29. Urban Development3▲ 11×5 topics
  30. Genetic Diversity3▲ 8.7×4 topics
  31. Morphology3▲ 20×5 topics
  32. Adaptive Radiation3▲ 100×2 topics
  33. Habitat Selection3▲ 44×2 topics
  34. Conservation Genetics3▲ 77×2 topics
  35. Mammal Evolution3▲ 151×1 topic
  36. Ocean Acidification3▲ 41×3 topics
  37. Phylogenetic Comparative Analysis3▲ 151×1 topic
  38. Rays2▲ 135×1 topic
  39. Sharks2▲ 135×1 topic
  40. Cryptic Diversity2▲ 166×2 topics

Which research topics does Western Australian Museum publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Marine Biology and Ecology Research, Subterranean biodiversity and taxonomy, Evolution and Paleontology Studies and Ichthyology and Marine Biology.

Marine Biology and Ecolo…4Marine Biology and Ecology Research: 4 fractional worksSubterranean biodiversit…3Subterranean biodiversity and taxonomy: 3 fractional worksEvolution and Paleontolo…3Evolution and Paleontology Studies: 3 fractional worksIchthyology and Marine B…2Ichthyology and Marine Biology: 2 fractional worksWildlife Ecology and Conservation: 2 fractional worksSpider Taxonomy and Behavior Studies: 2 fractional worksAmphibian and Reptile Bi…2Amphibian and Reptile Biology: 2 fractional worksCoral and Marine Ecosyst…2Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies: 2 fractional worksSpecies Distribution and…2Species Distribution and Climate Change: 2 fractional worksGenetic diversity and po…2Genetic diversity and population structure: 2 fractional works
OceanographyPaleontologyNature and Landscape ConservationEcology3 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Marine Biology and Ecology Research Oceanography 4 works
  2. 2 Subterranean biodiversity and taxonomy Paleontology 3 works
  3. 3 Evolution and Paleontology Studies Paleontology 3 works
  4. 4 Ichthyology and Marine Biology Nature and Landscape Conservation 2 works
  5. 5 Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Ecology 2 works
  6. 6 Spider Taxonomy and Behavior Studies Genetics 2 works
  7. 7 Amphibian and Reptile Biology Global and Planetary Change 2 works
  8. 8 Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies Ecology 2 works
  9. 9 Species Distribution and Climate Change Ecological Modeling 2 works
  10. 10 Genetic diversity and population structure Genetics 2 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world's own shares: the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available38.8%not open61.2%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors27.6%domestic only72.4%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Western Australian Museum's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 21% lower than in 2018-2021.

still counting1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon: one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Its share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share: all of science grows. This is Western Australian Museum as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.00023% in 2024.

still counting0.0020%0.0040%0.0060%Western Australian Museum0.00039% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Western Australian Museum over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

Year by year, against all institutions in the same year.

still counting5%10%15%all institutions10.0% in 2025Western Australian Museum7.3% in 202520102020

Of each year's output, the share that reached the world's 10% most cited for its field and year. Peak 14.9% in 2016.

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Western Australian Museum on Science Explorer

A card with Western Australian Museum's standing and the fields it leads in, for a post or a slide. A link to this page previews as the same card.

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Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners have tabs of their own, above.

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