Animals

The bouncy marsupial is one of the most iconic creatures living on the Australian continent. A strict herbivore, the kangaroo nonetheless is equipped with thick and muscular legs that are capable of powerful kicks, as well as formidable arms that can punch like a professional boxer, making it a risky move for any human to challenge one with bare hands. Certain specimens also grow to tremendous sizes, creating an even harder prey for the hunters.

Thanks to tool making skills iterated over millennia, Mirrabooka and his fellow warriors are well equipped for this kind of hunt, as their perfectly-aimed boomerangs can knock down even the largest kangaroos, while any who manages to get near will be dealt with by spears. The kangaroo then provides meat and hide for the hunters’ tribe.

A sneaky animal of the night, the wombat stays mostly away from sight during the daytime and only emerges from its burrow when the darkness falls, looking for a variety of plants for food. The bulky animal is an easy prey, but its relatively low population as well as its stealthy characters make it very challenging to find. Mirrabooka will have to listen very carefully for any faint sounds in the nearby shrubs and tall grass if he wants to catch one.

The emu is a large and flightless bird, and is sometimes called the Australian ostrich after their African cousins. To escape predators and humans who are after their meat, the bird runs fast for its size, leaving a short window for any boomerang or spear users to hit them.

Besides the meat, the emu’s feathers are readily harvested and used for significant events, cultural activities or simple decoration. During his tribal life, Mirrabooka and his brother Minjarra are frequently asked to bring in emu feathers, and they never disappoint their kin.

The laughing kookaburra is a cute kingfisher with an oversized beak, but its reputation derives from its laughter-like calls. While tribal hunters have little incentive to go after the bird, their presence is constantly felt throughout the journey thanks to their wild laughter. Mirrabooka’s totem animal happens to be the laughing kookaburra, thus he is responsible for the bird and is forbidden to harm it.

The wedge-tailed eagle is a magnificent bird, and certain Dreamtime stories list it as one of the creator beings. Almost always hovering at a high altitude, the eagle is often noticed when Mirrabooka looks up at the sky during his solo journey. To the lone and wearisome young warrior, the wedge-tailed eagle’s presence is a reassuring sign that he is constantly watched over and protected by the Dreamtime beings, greatly boosting his confidence even in the most difficult situations.

The echidna is the marsupial equivalent of a hedgehog in other continents. Boasting dense and sharp spikes all over its back, the echidna makes sure that it is rarely disrupted when it uses its long snout to sniff out ants, worms and other foods. Together with the platypus, the echidna is one of the last egg-laying mammals in the world, and the two share another trait in that they are both excellent swimmers.

At night, Mirrabooka might find an echidna near the river or other sources of water, but he has to move quickly lest the animal flees into the water, forever out of his reach. Female members of the tribe might occasionally find an echidna egg and serve it to the elders. Being rare and believed to have medicinal properties, the echidna is a prized food for the Aboriginal people.

Old traditions from the Dreamtime dictate that the koalas can be hunted for food, but the skin and bones must be properly handled in good order, lest terrible droughts will be cast upon the land and drive people and other animals to their ends.

If on the ground, koalas present slow and clumsy targets for Mirrabooka, but they know how to improve the chances of survival by hiding among the tall gum trees, making them unassailable without a boomerang. To skilled Aboriginal people like Mirrabooka, they are an important source of protein when ground-dwellers are rare.

While the Australian bushland lacks big cats or wolf packs, the crocodile sometimes makes an in-land adventure that brings it into close encounters with Mirrabooka and other Aboriginal people. The crocodile is larger and more lethal than even the greatest monitor lizards, so only the best hunters might try their luck against the behemoth. And contrary to popular beliefs, the crocodile can outrun most humans on land, so anyone without proper skills and stamina is advised to keep their distance when a crocodile is spotted.