Native Australians

Aboriginal

Source: www.goway.com.au

Aboriginals are the ones who were on the land from the earliest times including humans, animals, and even plants.

The Aborigines of Australia came from Southeast Asia, and would have arrived using some type of watercraft seeing as boats weren't as stable as they are today.

Surrounding islands that had a fair enough distance from Australia weren't accessible for thousands of years due to the lack of resources.

Sea levels were lower during the last glacial period making it more capable for aboriginals to get to Australia from Southeast Asia. 

Long distance navigation and sailing was later learned by Pacific people opening the door to habitation in Australia.

During the European colonization aborigines were threatened, and often forced off of their lands. 

In Tasmania Aborigines were killed meanwhile the Aborigines were also losing strength in mainland Australia dying from disease, economic hardships, and having their land taken.

Native Rights

In 1993 the Native Title Bill was passed.

This bill helped aborigines restore and gain land that they occupied, and gave them legal standing when dealing with mining companies that try to take over native areas.

Source: indigenousrights.net.au

Source:

Rowntree, Lester. "14." Globalization and Diversity: Geography of a Changing World. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2014. N. pag. Print.

Australia's Wildlife

Wildlife

Australia's wildlife is one of the most unique and distinct in all of the world. It is often what invites tourist to visit the country.

Two tourist cuddling up to a Koala at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in Queensland Australia.
Source: www.capricornia.com.au

Facts

The coming and going of Ice Ages didn't change the wildlife in Australia. In fact it helped the different species develop and become what they are today.  Australia is home to over 750 bird species, 300 lizard species, two different crocodile species, 140 snake species, and over 378 mammal species.

Australia has suffered a greater extinction of mammals, birds, and reptiles than any other continent since the beginning of European settlement. Extinction is also expected for more birds, reptiles, and mammals, as well as fish and frogs in upcoming years.

The wombat, wallaby, koala, echidna, kangaroo, dingo and platypus are the most well known animals of Australia.

Wombat

Source: blogs.unimelb.edu.au

Wombats are territorial, burrowing animals that prefer wet areas and could have more than ten burrows in its home. With small ears, a hairless nose, and long fur that can be various colors of brown to almost black sometimes they're known to be the largest burrowing mammal that is not spotted much in the wild. 

Wallaby

Source: www.cedarscottages.com

Wallabies are apart of the kangaroo group. They're known for their strong legs that can get them moving up to fast speeds, and help them jump great lengths. Also using their legs for protection during fights with other mammals. In addition to having strong legs they also have strong tails. A wallabies diet consist of mainly plants and grasses.

Koala

Source: www.animalfactguide.com

Koala's are often referred to as "koala bears" when they aren't  bears at all. Instead a Koala is a pouched mammal that lives in Eucalyptus trees in Eastern Australia where they spend most of their day asleep. If they aren't sleeping they're eating eucalyptus leaves where they digest most of the moisture from the leaves seeing as they aren't big on drinking water. The average life span for a Koala is 20 years.

Echidna

Australian Maps

Thematic Maps

What is a thematic map? A thematic map is a map that uses specific themes that connect to a geographic area. Below I show examples of a Precipitation, Temperature, and Agricultural map.

Precipitation/Annual Rainfall Map

This map shows how much rainfall Australia receives throughout the year. The lighter of the blues represents the least amount of days the area rains. The areas that show a darker blue color represent more days the area receives rain. 

Source: www.bestcountryreports.com

Temperature Map

This temperature map represents how hot Australia gets during the summer months. The darkness of the color represents the warmer the area is. 

Source: scienceblogs.com

Agricultural Map

This map of Australia represents areas of agriculture. Specific colors represent areas of crops, dairy, forests, fruits, etc. Also on the map are symbols that represent such things like where rice, sheep, oats, cattle, etc. can be found. 

Source: go.grolier.com