Twelve striking finalists’ images will go on display next month at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery as part of Beaker Street Festival.


‘The Magic Rat and His Slick Machine’ by Ben Alldridge is an image chosen because it shows the scientific value of other specialised camera equipment or photographic process. © Ben Alldridge.

A glowing quoll in the Tasmanian wilderness, the first documentation of its kind, leads a striking line-up of finalists announced for the 2025 Beaker Street Science Photography Prize. Captured by photographer Ben Alldridge using specialised UV-sensitive techniques, the image reveals the Eastern Quoll (Dasyurus viverrinus) biofluorescing in its natural habitat. While many animals are known to glow under ultraviolet light, this is the first time the phenomenon has been recorded in the wild for this endangered species. The image forms part of ongoing research into the impacts of light pollution on native wildlife.

Other finalists in the list include:
Sarah Lloyd – Slime Moulds: Overlooked and Underestimated – Capturing micro-organisms critical to nutrient cycling;
Alison McNeice – PhotosyntheSlug – A sea slug that photosynthesises via kleptoplasty;
David Nolan – Milky Way over Waterworks Reserve – Highlighting the importance of dark sky conservation;
Jordan Cripps – Your Hand in Mine – Aurora Australis over the Tessellated Pavement;
Chelsea Bell – Crystalline Forest – Frost formation on Nothofagus gunnii leaves;
Nicolas Horniblow – Sea Spider – Macrophotography of Tasmania’s Pallenella ambigua;
Kelli Miller – Inner Terrain – Microscopy revealing polymerised protein puddles in blood.
Deon Scanlon – Aerodynamic Attraction – Capturing the wonder of birds in flight;
Rosa Maria Cañedo-Apolaya – Keep Swimming… This is My Spot – Documenting territorial fish behaviour;
Lily Barnett – Lunch Time – A white-bellied sea eagle stealing prey from a fur seal;
Matilda Francis (Under 12) – Liken the Lichen – A young photographer’s close-up of lichen at Mt Field.

The Judges’ Choice winner will receive a $200 voucher to spend on food and wine at Frogmore Creek Cellar Door and Restaurant in Richmond, while the People’s Choice winner will enjoy a wilderness cruise for two adults with Pennicott Wilderness Journeys. The Science Photography Prize is one of many public highlights of Beaker Street Festival, a week-long celebration of science and art held across Tasmania from 12 to 19 August. With more than 70 events, the 2025 program includes headline talks, immersive field trips, after-dark adventures and quirky experiences such as a nightclub for sexual health, slime mould safaris and a live onstage dating show. Beaker Street Festival invites curious minds of all backgrounds to explore the world through science, story and connection.