In Arnhemland both bustard and emu numbers are probably low but
relatively stable as there are very few people and much inaccessible
country. For instance at Kudjekbinj there is no road access for up to
five months of the year. And apart from the main one in there are few
tracks anywhere - two to fishing spots and one to a dangerous dreaming
site which has been blocked for some years.
However now a mining company is planning exploratory work which means
running other tracks through and opening up more country. And I'm told
mining interests are keen to explore many other Aboriginal areas as well,
aims that are supported by younger people who want all the things they
see white folk have, among them schools and health facilities. And as
the Aboriginal population is burgeoning (one result of the loss of
traditional ways of population control) there will be even more pressure.
If guns and vehicles were banned then what about those who use those
Aboriginal people who use them sensibly? Speaking for my family,
hunting allows Kunwinjku people to retain their links with the land,
links they soon lose living in cities and eating supermarket meat. If
anything Aboriginal people ought to be encouraged to stay on their land
and to use their knowledge and resources sustainably as many still do.
There are programs up here enabling Aboriginal people to collect various
wildlife,ie turtles and Red-tailed Black Cockatoo (eggs and nestlings)
one aim being to give them jobs, the other to ensure that habitats are
preserved.
I've seen how my relatives react when they meet (mainly American)
birdwatchers that I take out, and discover these people are really very
interested and even envious of their ties with wildlife and the land.
Such interest has meant these Aboriginal people (and my son Peterson was
one) no longer consider their traditions as 'rubbish'. So I'm
encouraging their involvement in this sort of tourism as much as I can.
Incidentally I agree with Richard Johnson's comments on crops, habitat
and grazing.
I'm quite concerned as are others up here about the invasion of Gamba
Grass. This African species introduced by pastoralists is a bulky
perennial which grows several metres high and will not only support fire
hot enough to kill eucalypt saplings but is so prolific it smothers other
plants. This plant has the potential to be as bad, if not worse than
mimosa.
Denise
Denise Goodfellow (Lawungkurr Maralngurra)
Follow these direct links to my work on the web:
Four Short Stories
http://www.2DocStock.com/shortstories/Index.html
Birds of Darwin Sketches
HYPERLINK http://www.2DocStock.com/BirdsDarwin/Index.html
http://www.2DocStock.com/BirdsDarwin/Index.html
Birding & Natural History in the Far North
http://www.earthfoot.org/places/au002.htm
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
www.shc.melb.catholic.edu.au/home/birding/index.html
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