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Exploring Australia

Occupying the Land

T he ancestors of today’s Aborigines had to be tough and intelligent to survive in Australia’s wide range of temperatures, weather and environments. They also had to be able to use the land to suit their needs. During the last Ice Age , between 10,000 and 60,000 years ago, the world became much colder and drier. The Aborigines had to cope with massive temperature changes. Some land turned into desert and other areas became covered with rain forest.

A ustralia has areas of swampland like the one above. Swamps provided plenty of food for Aboriginal groups, such as birds, fish and even crocodiles. T he Simpson Desert is a vast area of rolling sandhills. It is very difficult to find food in Australia’s deserts, but Aborigines have managed to survive even here.

Rising Seas As the Earth’s climate became warmer after the Ice Age, glaciers and the polar ice-caps began to melt. All this extra water made the level of the world’s oceans rise. In some places the sea rose several yards in about ten years. Aborigines living on the coast of Australia were forced to explore inland as their land became covered in water. The oral histories of the coastal Aboriginal communities of northern Australia tell us about important Aboriginal ritual places which are now under the sea.