Encountering Australia

Encountering Australia is one of three themes addressed in Old New Land.

Australia is both a continent and an island. For 50 million years, its plants and animals were isolated from the rest of the world.

These native species were utterly strange to settlers, who set out to remake a land that lacked 'useful' animals and plants. Some settlers imported familiar species from home for practical or ornamental purposes. Others sought to rid the land of 'pests'. These and other actions sometimes caused extinctions.

The buffalo catcher.

Buffalo catcher, 1980s

Tommy Fawcett's buffalo catcher was a second-hand Toyota four-wheel drive fitted with a 'bionic arm'. The 'arm' was designed and patented by Kal Carrick in 1981. Fawcett ran a buffalo catching team in western Arnhem Land, catching 10 to 20 animals a day.

The buffalo catcher is on display in Old New Land.

> Watch the buffalo catcher in action