Montshire Minute: Australia

Originally aired during the week of September 28, 1998

Monday

As a group of Montshire travelers discovered earlier this month, Australia boasts some of the most ancient animals on earth. One of our oldest ancestors is alive and well and living "down under." The Queensland lungfish is thought to be close to 400 million years old, the oldest surviving vertebrate. Though now an endangered species, this living fossil can still be seen in the freshwater rivers of eastern Queensland. The fish resembles a stout eel with a broad head and a tail which ends in a point. It grows to be about four feet long and spends its time bottom feeding. The lungfish has tiny holes under its jaw - electro-receptors that can sense the presence of live food, like worms, in the dark. While a lungfish breathes mostly through its gills, it can surface and breathe with its single lung if the water has lacks enough oxygen.

Tuesday

If you're a fish, it probably doesn't matter if you can tell the difference between an alligator and a crocodile - they both have lots of teeth and YOU are their dinner. But if you're a Montshire visitor, you really can take the time to learn the difference between the two (without having to swim for safety). The skulls of both creatures are on display at the museum. You'll notice the crocodile's head is more elongated, while the alligator has a shorter, broader snout. Both creatures can be found in Australia, but the saltwater species of crocodile is found nowhere else but "down under." The saltwater croc can reach nearly 20 feet in length. Despite its name, it can be found in river systems far inland. Like several other examples of Australian wildlife, crocodiles are an ancient species. They've survived almost unchanged for 200 million years, when dinosaurs still roamed the earth.

Wednesday

Until very recently, the world's largest carnivorous marsupial could be found in the forests of Tasmania off the coast of Australia. Known as Thylacien (THIGH-la-scene) and commonly referred to as the Tasmanian Wolf or Tasmanian Tiger, the last animal died in captivity in 1936. This rare creature was killed off mostly by authorities concerned about protecting livestock. For 20,000 years, the Tasmanian wolf (... or tiger, depending on your point of view), was at the top of the food chain, leaving some of its kill behind for other animals like the Tasmanian Devil (which, despite its ferocious reputation, is more of a scavenger than a predator). While there have been no confirmed sightings, there is hope that some Tasmanian tigers might actually remain in remote parts of the island. Reports of tiger sightings are made each year.

Thursday

In 1778, Captain Arthur Phillip brought a fleet of 10 ships to anchor in Sydney Cove, Australia. Soldiers and convicts in this tiny party were founders of a penal colony that rapidly grew into one of the most modern nations in the world. Unfortunately, there are few examples in history of how quickly new settlement can affect the landscape. For thousands of years, Australian aborigines used fire to selectively burn tangled forest growth. Over time, careful burning produced plants that were suitable to a great variety of native animals, especially medium-sized marsupials the aboriginies hunted for food. But for white settlers, Australia seemed to offer endless stretches of grassland for sheep and cattle. By 1860, there were over 20 million sheep on the continent. These animals conspired to pound the fragile Australian soil into dust, upsetting the delicate ecological balance.

Friday

Australia is an example of how alien species can rapidly destroy a fragile ecosystem. Rabbits imported by an Australian farmer in 1859 were set loose in the countryside for sport hunting. Once they were loose in the bush the rabbits bred like... well, like rabbits. According to John Vandenbeld in his book Nature of Australia, the local environment was a perfect fit for rabbits - almost too perfect. They thrived on the short grasses left behind by sheep herds, and the sandy soils found over much of the continent made burrowing easy. The decline in native species also set the stage for alien invaders. Rabbits used riverbanks to move deep into the Australian interior, displacing native wildlife like bilbies and rabbit-eared bandicoots. The rabbits simply ate everything in sight, even making sheep farming impossible. Animals like the dingo which might have slowed the rabbit population had also been shot in large numbers to protect livestock.