For each lecture/talk, Ben can also incorporate a selection of actual fossils/specimens found across Victoria that can be handled by students. These lectures and talks can conducted online if needed and can align to specific curriculum where requested.

1) Rise and Fall of the Mega-toothed Sharks: I follow the evolutionary lineage of the Megalodon, the reasons for its extinctions, and the new evidence I've discovered in Melbourne.

2) Whale Evolution: whales once walked on land, over 50 million years ago. How did they come to be the biggest creature that has ever lived? In this presentation, I look at how and why whales went back into the water, their functional anatomy, and the incredible diversity of extinct and recent whales.

3) The Demise of the Australian Megafauna: in this presentation, I look at Australia 40 - 50,000 years ago. Who were the megafauna? Why did they die out? and what can we learn from this extinction event?

4) The Pseudo-toothed Pterror-Birds: the Pelagornithids: they were the largest flying birds that ever existed. With bizarre pseudo-teeth-like projections on their jaw and a wingspan more than 6 meters in length, in this presentation, I attempt to make sense of their anatomy.

5) Hunting the Real Moby Dick: I've been looking for the remains of one of the largest macropredators ever known from the fossil record. Livyatan was a 17-metre-long killer sperm whale that feasted on other whales. In this presentation, I look at the anatomy of sperm whales (they're very strange), their evolution, and then focus on a group known as the Killer Sperm Whales (that includes Livyatan).

6) Megafauna from Melbourne's Past: I look at the past 30 million years of geological upheaval and animal evolution along the Victorian coastline, with a specific emphasis on marine/semi-aquatic and terrestrial animals.

7) Prehistoric Bayside: The fossil sites of Bayside are some of the most important on the continent. We've found killer sperm whales, pelagornithids, giant marsupials, bus-sized sharks, and the list keeps growing.

8) The Sharks and Rays of Port Phillip Bay: This presentation introduces students to the shark and ray fauna of Port Phillip Bay (and southern Australia) by understanding their habitats, known life cycles, functional morphology (anatomy) and their diverse evolutionary traits.

This program will teach students about the geological history of Port Phillip Bay and the ways in which humans impact shark/ray populations/habitats in Port Phillip Bay.

9) The Penguins of Australia: This presentation discusses the anatomy of penguins and the species residing within all known Australian landmasses (including sub-antarctic territories). We’ll be understanding their behaviour/habits, known life-cycles, anatomy and their diverse evolutionary traits that have allowed many penguin species to dominate southern marine ecosystems