5.9 The first Australian scientists classified their environment

5.9

Learning intentions

By the end of this topic, you will be able to: • describe some of the ways in which First

Nations peoples classified and communicated their understanding of local flora and fauna.

The first Australian scientists classified their environment

Key ideas

• Australia is the second driest continent in the world and the driest inhabited continent. • Despite the harsh climate, Australia is home to hundreds of different organisms. • First Nations peoples were the first to identify and access the organisms that are unique to Australia.

The Australian environment

> Pila: spinifex plains, low areas between dunes; this is the best place to gather seeds to eat. The Yanyuwa people in the Northern Territory classi ed all organisms according to where they were located. Their classi cation system was rst divided into two broad categories: coastal/marine or inland. This was then further divided according to the characteristics of the organism. For example, walya can refer to all dugong but this is divided into 16 further names according to the dugong’s age, size and gender and even the dugong’s status in its herd. This is much more detailed than the descriptions in the Linnaean system. Early European visitors to Australia often depended on the First Nations peoples to identify and describe the plants and animals in the unique environment. This can be seen with the names that were used when these animals were ‘discovered’ by European scientists. When Europeans rst visited Uluru and Kata Tjuta (the Olgas) in the 1870s, they were confronted with a harsh landscape. Their initial aim was to nd a route for the overland telegraph line from Adelaide to the Top End and to set up pastures for sheep and cattle grazing. They soon decided that the region was unsuitable and left. However, the traditional owners of the land, the Anangu people, had lived on this land for thousands of years and understood it well. The Anangu people classi ed their environment to help them navigate and manage Country. They use the following names: > Puli: rocky areas, gorges, stony slopes; animals come to this area to nd shelter and water > Puti: open woodland; after the rains, this area has an abundance of grass, which the kangaroos eat, and honey ants build their nests in this areaDRAFT

Figure 1 Puti habitat Figure 2 Pila habitat

Figure 3 Puli habitat

Uniquely Australian mammals such as the wulaba (wallaby), buduru (potoroo), wularu (wallaroo), wumbat (wombat) and dingu (dingo) were all rst classi ed by the Dharawal people of New South Wales. Mammals are rarely seen during the day in Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park. Most are nocturnal and come out in the evening, avoiding the heat of the daytime desert. The most abundant groups of mammals are the placentals and the marsupials. Retrieve 1 One of the classes of vertebrate is Amphibia. Identify the characteristic of amphibians that would make it dif cult for them to live in arid environments. Identify the other animal classes that would struggle to survive in arid environments. 2 Identify one reason why the bilby’s pouch is rear facing. Comprehend 3 Explain why the Anangu people devised a system of classi cation for the natural habitats around them. Analyse 4 Infer why monotremes would nd it dif cult to breed in arid environments. Apply 5 Investigate the mammals, reptiles, birds and invertebrates found in the Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park. Make a list of ve for each category. Classify each one into its correct group. 6 Investigate the kind of environment that the Anangu people lived in and the

5.9 Check your learning

foods they ate to survive. List at least ve animals and ve plants they ate. 7 Early Europeans left this environment because they could not survive. Propose why they struggled to nd food and water here. 8 In a group of four, use a large sheet of paper to create two collages about things you would expect to nd in Uluru–Kata

Tjuta National Park. The rst collage should show living things; and the second, non-living things. One pair should create the ‘living’ collage and the other should create the ‘non-living’ collage. 9 Investigate which mammals can be found in Australia’s arid environments.

Classify each of these mammals as placentals, monotremes or marsupials.

List any speci c Latin double names (genus and species) given for each animal.

Marsupials, such as the bilby ( Tjalku , a very important animal for the Anangu people), give birth to underdeveloped young but protect them by having a pouch in which further development can occur. The pouch is similar to that of a kangaroo; however, it is a backward-opening pouch. When the young are fully developed, they can leave the pouch and survive the harsh climate. DRAFT Quiz me Complete the Quiz me to check how well you’ve mastered the learning intentions and to be assigned a worksheet at your level. Figure 4 Another example of Puli habitat

Figure 5 A bilby