A New History of Australia in 15 Animals

A history of Australia through 15 case studies of animals, exploring how the relationship between humans and animals have shaped this region.

Cute, captivating and strange, Australia’s distinctive marsupials- kangaroos and koalas - have long served as touchstones of national pride and identity. Other animals have, in comparison, been viewed in a highly negative light; crocodiles as fearsome predators, disease-ridden mosquitoes and the tragedy of Tasmanian tigers. But rarely have these species been seen as making history.

Responding to calls to incorporate Aboriginal ways of knowing into historical understanding, this book presents a new history of Australia through 15 stories of non-human animal species. Showing that humans are not the sole makers of history, it highlights Australian animals that were on the continent prior to human occupation, those who arrived as fellow travellers, those who thrived with us and those for whom people have meant decline and even extinction. What can the dingo tell us about ongoing contact between Australia’s indigenous peoples and ancient travellers? How did sheep spark widespread violence? Why was the introduction of the rabbit such a monumental mistake, and why does Australia have the world’s largest population of feral camels?

Exploring all these questions and more, A New History of Australia in 15 Animals shows how non-human habitants have both enabled and frustrated human intentions, and shaped the history of this continent.