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Some answers were just spooky, such as the one to the question I asked about the single human bare foot print found dried in a mud plain. As a well-trained field geomorphologist, I could interpret the surrounding erosional and depositional patterns and processes and the water level signs from the last wet season, but the footprint had me seriously puzzled. Why only one? „That‟s my ancestor‟s‟ the elder answered, quietly mumbling that he did not get much sleep the night before because of all the movement and noise the ancestors had made. I had slept like a baby under the stars and heard nothing. My initial impressions and observations of Oriners and Sefton left me with an overall sense that this „forest country‟ and its cultural landscapes were truly unique - not just compared to the rest of the Mitchell catchment, which I know well, but also on a national and even international level. This region is not a human-free wilderness in the traditional sense of that term as it emerged in the 19 th century (Langton 1996) . Nor is it the kind of wilderness envisaged by the Queensland „Wild River‟ legislation, which has to my mind alienated Indigenous peoples‟ rights and histories of care whilst being ineffective in addressing or curtailing the true management needs and threats. Rather, Oriners (and Sefton) are an integral part of a relatively „wild‟ area where natural processes still dominate with the help and guidance of direct low-impact actions of humans that are deeply connected to place and landscape through rich traditional customs and laws. David Hughes‟ description of Oriners as „a piece of the way Cape York used to be‟ is fitting, and is supported by both scientific assessments (Abrahams, Mulvaney et al. 1995; Whisson and Young 1995), and by my own impressions. Having shown me the beauty and value of the landscape, the elders‟ multifaceted answers to my initial naive question came to an end with a discussion of the current challenges of how to manage and maintain the integrity of large tracts of Indigenous land under the modern pressures for development. My own personal observations over the years indicate that this landscape is under threat physically, biologically, and culturally. Some language and cultural knowledge has been lost, and thresholds of degradation have been crossed with respect to altered fire regimes and woodland thickening, weed and feral animal invasions, and the erosion effects caused by these factors and others such as cattle and roads. The elders were aware of these problems, as well as the need for money to combat them and the difficulty in engaging young people about traditional land management and bush living when the young have so many new challenges, distractions, and comforts back in town. Yet during my early visits it was already clear that some solutions to the contemporary management challenges had emerged, most obviously the elders and youth just „getting out there and doing it‟. This seemed to have been particularly evident in the 1990s after the Kowanyama community regained control and modern ownership rights over their traditional country around Oriners and Sefton. But the relatively small size of these properties have hampered efforts to fully re-instate indigenous management, control and self-governance over the wider landscape, particularly with respect to appropriately scaled fire and weed management. Paradoxically, the relatively large sizes of these properties, the access issues, and the low levels of human presence have also hampered the implementation of indigenous management techniques and restoration opportunities. What seems to be needed is that the wider group of indigenous people who have rights to this „forest county‟, including those living beyond Kowanyama, work together under the principle of „strength in numbers‟. Cumulative actions moving towards regional control and management of additional traditional lands to north and east would enable holistic ecosystem management as well as the maintenance of cultural connections, story lines, and wider community well-being. At the time I certainly did not know, and perhaps nor did the elders with me, that the potential for larger scale indigenous ownership and management of the „forest country‟ would become a real possibility thanks to the political struggles and perseverance of this wider group. Despite the invasive impacts and the management challenges, a majority of the cultural, physical, and biological landscapes in and around Oriners and Sefton are still healthy and intact over large areas. Since degradation pathways are not too severe, restoration actions can bring cultural, physical, and biological conditions and processes back toward a pre- European and/or pre-disturbance condition, or at a minimum prevent or reduce future Working Knowledge at Oriners Station, Cape York 181
degradation. Genuine restoration opportunities of this nature are increasingly rare in Australia, especially at the scale which now appears possible. This region will be an important location for innovative and alternative thinking, cooperation, management, and governance. Bold leadership and motivated young people will be paramount to future success. Working Knowledge at Oriners Station, Cape York 182
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T Working Knowledge: local ecologic
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CONTENTS Acknowledgments ..........
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5 Working knowledge: Conclusions an
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Figure 29. Mitchell catchment in fl
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Figure 68. 2004 Aerial Photograph o
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The project is the
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This is a report
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space for a complementary study emp
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cattlemen and the Hughes family, th
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As a contrast and complement, it is
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of people residing there during the
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the area for one or two seasons, bu
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Fire Frequency: for the Oriners are
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Strang then describes the story of
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emembered linguistic associations.
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Mystical/spiritual Scientific Perso
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ut your children will probably get
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20 years, Cecil Hughes, the son of
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Robert Burns: I was walking around
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Corporation. 12 Viv Sinnamon provid
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The purchase process was a factor i
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Viv Sinnamon: Yeah, and when we had
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communities, Lockhardt [River] and
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1.7 Oriners and the contemporary re
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management of country are not new.
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The above points demonstrate the va
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about forest and think of something
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Marcus Barber: Is that where Kowany
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-----------------------------------
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comes along with that, and where th
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Ivan Jimmy‟s brother Wilfred made
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Indigenous Australians are renowned
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Colin Hughes followed up his though
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Ezra Michael: I never heard it. No.
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Marcus Barber: So every time you we
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Figure 20. Oriners Lagoon in flood
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Figure 23. Large Woody Debris (LWD)
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Figure 24. Jeff Shellberg talks wit
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Figure 27. Mitchell catchment in fl
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2.2.4 Permanent water and groundwat
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Marcus Barber: So do you know how d
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Marcus Barber: Does that happen at
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Marcus Barber: What animals do you
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people are using the lagoon. Becaus
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that old black headed python. You g
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Marcus Barber: I was trying to find
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Major introduced animals at Oriners
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Colin Hughes: Oh there‟s just a l
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There was never too many [wild hors
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Cecil Hughes: Yes, you never saw th
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And they had special fish traps her
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Philip Yam: 3 or 4 times. A few tim
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Conversations with Philip Yam about
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Marcus Barber: so you have to get f
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2.5.4 Cattlemen: working connection
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Edwin David Most of the older build
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spirits being reborn in new generat
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Marcus Barber: Phillip‟s son Max?
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necessary at some of the times they
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Marcus Barber: If it was a really w
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hobble the horse and camp out there
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Marcus Barber: So you were moving a
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Marcus Barber: Was the grass still
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Philip Yam: Drumduff. We got blamed
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purpose of fires needs to be very c
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Marcus Barber: But it‟s been ther
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Figure 38. Oriners station from the
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and it traverses some areas prone t
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2.7.1 Applying „Working Knowledge
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ochen (uy -) ojen (uy -) mujun (uy
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Oykangand Olkol Og Water ok Water o
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Other signs mark a broader seasonal
Page 145 and 146: The two comments from the Jimmy bro
Page 147 and 148: Average Monthly Rainfall (mm)_ 450
Page 149 and 150: demonstrated that cyclone landing f
Page 151 and 152: Figure 48. Geology of the catchment
Page 153 and 154: 3.2.4 Soils The soils of the “for
Page 155 and 156: Figure 49. Soils of Oriners and Sef
Page 157 and 158: Figure 52. RAAF oblique photograph
Page 159 and 160: Annaly (A) Land System Lowlands on
Page 161 and 162: 3.2.6 Soil erosion Soil erosion can
Page 163 and 164: Figure 56. Land use map of the Mitc
Page 165 and 166: larger valleys of Hoodoo and Sellar
Page 167 and 168: solutes from subsurface sedimentary
Page 169 and 170: 3.2.10.2 Eight Mile valley near Ori
Page 171 and 172: Elevation (m) 180 160 140 120 100 8
Page 173 and 174: Figure 64. 1955 Aerial Photograph o
Page 175 and 176: pools like these are typically carv
Page 177 and 178: Figure 67. 1955 Aerial Photograph O
Page 179 and 180: Working Knowledge at Oriners Statio
Page 181 and 182: have also been defined as valley-bo
Page 187 and 188: Eucalyptus leptophleba (Mollow Red
Page 189 and 190: to manage vegetation and game, or f
Page 191 and 192: Figure 77. 1955 aerial photograph o
Page 193 and 194: Overall pig populations are poorly
Page 195: area can be obtained from the Queen
Page 199 and 200: Section 4.1 contains models of inte
Page 201 and 202: Figure 80. Model of Oriners landsca
Page 203 and 204: 4.1.3 Late dry season Two key diffe
Page 205 and 206: eshape the elements in the same way
Page 207 and 208: Evidence from Section 2.6.4 and 3.2
Page 211 and 212: Figure 92. Oblique air photos of Ho
Page 213 and 214: The primary contexts for learning k
Page 215 and 216: Despite data limitation, there is e
Page 217 and 218: Marcus Barber: If you were to think
Page 219 and 220: Regional scale Neighbouring Statio
Page 221 and 222: Cotter, G. (1995). A study of the p
Page 223 and 224: Kowanyama Aboriginal Council (2003)
Page 225 and 226: Smart, J., K. G. Grimes, et al. (19
Page 227 and 228: 7 GLOSSARY 38 Alkaline- having the
Page 229 and 230: Fluvial Megafan- a large (10 3 -10
Page 231 and 232: Potential Energy- the stored energy
Page 233 and 234: 8 APPENDICES 8.1 Informed Consent F
Page 235 and 236: 8.3 Wildlife Animal Species List fo
Page 237 and 238: Birds Coraciidae Eurystomus orienta
Page 239 and 240: Reptiles Crocodylidae Crocodylus jo
Page 241 and 242: Dicots Fabaceae Crotalaria montana
Page 243 and 244: Dicots Myrtaceae Neofabricia serici
Page 245 and 246: Monocots Poaceae Eriachne sp. C Mon
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Working Knowledge at Oriners Statio
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