Prehistoric Marine Life in Australia’s Inland Sea by Dr Danielle Clode, Flinders senior research fellow in creative writing, has been awarded a Certificate of Commendation for best Popular Zoology at this year’s Royal Zoological Society of NSW Whitley Awards.

The illustrated book which is also cited as a notable information book for 2016 by the Children’s Book Council of Australia, was among 68 publications submitted to recognise best Australasian zoology and fauna publications from the past 12 months.

It was also long-listed in the Children’s Book Council Awards.

“Well-written text and superb backup images guarantee that Prehistoric Marine Life in Australia’s Inland Sea is a deserving winner in Popular Zoology, a category most often taken out by books dealing with living fauna,” the citation from Royal Zoological Society NSW judge Dr Arthur White said.

The book is set in the Cretaceous period when inland Australia was flooded with the creation of the Eromanga Sea, a dramatic event that had major consequences on the animals that lived in this sea and those that inhabited the shoreline.

“In the recent past, the only way that you could popularise Australian fossils was to put a dinosaur on the cover and introduce other creatures by stealth,” Dr White said, adding this was the strategy used by (Flinders University Strategic Professor in Palaeontology) John Long in his popular fossil book Australian Dinosaurs and other Animals from the Mesozoic.

Dr White said Prehistoric Marine Life in Australia’s Inland Sea (Museum Victoria) is “not overly technical but always contains some specific information that hints at a fascinating ecosystem dominated by marine giants and bizarre smaller animals”.

“The text is gentle and not condescending. There is a lot to think about and a lot to keep track of in this ancient world.

“Danielle has taken a patient yet well-informed approach and has penned a highly readable account of the animals of Australia’ inland sea.”

Dr Clode has since completed a new book, The Wasp and the Orchid: the life and work of Edith Coleman.

Publisher Picador commissioned the book to tell the story of the Australian naturalist and nature writer Edith Coleman which, in turn, received funding from the Australian Orchid Foundation and inspired Flinders creative writing student Susan Double’s essay on the topic which was shortlisted for this year’s Bragg UNSW Press Prize for Science Writing 2016.

Work has also commenced on another publication about the first wave of European settlement in Australia.

It will be co-edited by Dr Gillian Dooley, also from the School of Humanities and Creative Arts at Flinders.

Dr Clode and Dr Dooley are presenting on their latest research at the International Australian Studies Association in WA this week.