During winter 1989 we made a 4WD trip in outback South Australia, during
which we camped at Erudina Station under the northern Flinders Ranges.
The manager John McEntee shared some of his extensive knowledge of the
Adnamatana people and their language.
While there I obtained two wordlist booklets he had produced on the
language. They are:
"Witi-ita-nanalpila - Plants and birds of the northern Flinders Ranges
and adjacent plains with aboriginal names, written by John McEntee with
Pearl and John McKenzie" (1986, ISBN 0-9596644-1-6).
NB - McEntee uses a series of diacritical marks to distinguish different
sounds, which this computer can't reproduce.
"Arthropods of the northern Flinders Ranges and adjacent plains with
aboriginal names" by John McEntee. (1988 Copyright John McEntee and
Pearl McKenzie - ISBN 0-959-6644-2-4)
Both contain quite a lot more information than a simple wordlist, with
notes on cultural significance of the creatures where applicable.
I do not know if he produced a similar works on mammals and reptiles of
the area.
On mammals of the area I must recommend an excellent book by Dorothy
Tunbridge,
"The Story of the Flinders Ranges Mammals" (Kangaroo Press,1991, ISBN
0-86417-390-3))
This book began with her work to compile a dictionary of the
Adnyamathanha people (different spelling to McEntee's, same language);
this was done in association with the Nepabunna Aboriginal School. There
were more words for mammals than existing mammals to fit them - this led
to investigations of early mammal collections made by Europeans and
excavations of cave deposits - greatly increasing the knowledge of the
mammals which once dwelt in the ranges but are now mostly extinct. The
known historic range of some species, such as the Ghost Bat, was
extended as a result. In addition much information on cultural matters
is provided, including how to make what I would call a Kangaroo
haggis-cum-black pudding.
I think this study would provide an excellent model for a work on
aboriginal ornithology. Anyone interested in the conservation of the
fauna of this continent should read it.
Anthea Fleming
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