Native Aboriginal Diet
Before European settlement, Australian aborigines survived for thousands of years as nomadic hunter-gatherers. They relied on their knowledge of the land and seasons to find and prepare food.
Other People Are Reading
-
Mammals and Birds
-
Aborigines hunted native mammals, including kangaroo and wallaby, and birds, including emu. It was common for aboriginal people to use every part of the animal, including the organs and blood.
Other Meats
-
In coastal areas, aborigines ate fish and shellfish. Aboriginal people also ate the flesh from lizards, snakes and certain insects.
-
Plants
-
Australian aborigines did not cultivate plants, but instead gathered wild berries, fruits, nuts, roots and tubers. Some plant foods required careful preparation to avoid poisoning.
Bread
-
Aborigines baked a simple bread, now known as damper, from flour and water. Later, damper became a staple food of early European settlers.
Food Preparation
-
Aborigines ate many plant foods raw. Meats and fish were roasted over a fire and damper was baked in the ashes. Some aboriginal tribes used large ground ovens to steam meats and other foods.
-
References
- Photo Credit Tom Brakefield/Stockbyte/Getty Images
