Table Of ContentJournal Ethnobiology 16(2):224-233 Winter 1996
of
SHORT COMMUNICATION
AND
AUSTRALIAN
ABORIGINAL BURNING, MISHAPS
FOR ETHNOBIOLOGY
CONFLICT: IMPLICATIONS
HOWARD
TREVOR
N.
GPO
Box
4306
NT
Darwin
0801
INTRODUCTION
Aboriginal burning and
long-term on and
its effects Australian vegetation eco-
systems have been
hotly debated.
Jones (1969) characterizes Aborigines as 'fire-stick
who
farmers'
deliberately manipulated regimes and bringing about
resources
fire
changes
significant to the Australian biota. Horton on the other hand, sug-
(1982),
and
gests that climate human
soil are determinants of vegetation with ignition
being
relatively insignificant. 1 Today, ecologists and land managers are grappling
with many
the decline of
fire-sensitive species, such as the cypress pine
Callitris
which
intratropica, has been severely impacted by
regimes following
altered
fire
the settlement
of the northern (Bowman Bow-
Australian savanna
1995a, 1995b;
man
Haynes
et al. 1988, 1993; 1985, 1991). Land use has changed, and animals
feral
and now
add
plants
further (Bowman
ecological complexity Latz 1995a).
1991;
much
Across
of northern and
central Australia there remains considerable scope
for collaborative research involving Aborigines, and with
anthropologists ecologists
respect to the ecology
of Aboriginal
burning.
Aboriginal
society has also been from
significantly transformed. Alienation
the land and economic
impoverishment many
have while
occurred
in regions,
some
groups
continue occupy now new
to traditional lands and engage forms
in
economic
of endeavor
such
as ecotourism
or beef production. Aboriginal
cattle
burning
many
continues, with
albeit contemporary and
adaptations, practice
this
rutiny
management
the
ethnobiologists should
contribute
to this
more
firmly
set Australian
Aboriginal burning
in the broad
context of hunter-gatherer
with
his discussion
of deliberate environmental
manipulation and do-
resource
mestication.
In
this paper, sketch
the pragmatic and
I burn-
esoteric aspects of Aboriginal
drawing
ing,
together
the fragments
of existing within
anthropological research
an
ethnobiological and my
ecological framework.
But with
concerns
are also
broader
issues of relevance
to ethnobiology and themes human-environment
in
JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY
Winter 1996
223
when
relationships. Fire, even used by experienced practitioners, whether rang-
2
and mis-managed
ers, pastoralists or Aborigines, a volatile easily Sources
is tool.
and
of conflict resolution processes have been a major analytical focus for anthro-
pologists (Gluckman Hallpike Meyers While
1965; 1977; Hiatt 1965; 1986). conflict
in Aboriginal communities mostly generated by causes other than argue
is fire,
I
uncommon
from problems and
that social tension arising fire-related not offers
is
an and
opportunity for a profitable marriage of political anthropology ethnobiology
(see Healey 1994 for a similar orientation). To set the stage for this theoretical con-
vergence, begin with an outline of in Aboriginal practice and thought.
fire
I
KNOWLEDGE AND CHANGE
ABORIGINAL
FIRE USE,
Aboriginal cosmology and natural history concepts are well documented
(e.g.
Rose 1992). Narrative traditions record the eventful journeys of creative ancestors
who
sculpted landforms and introduced natural phenomena, including people.
all
were
Rules for the ritual maintenance of country, including the proper use of fire,
would Of
and
established to ensure that the social natural order prevail. course,
the use of has numerous practical applications as well. Campsites are cleared
fire
game
and
and between driven
of grass snakes, signals transmitted distant parties
However, even hunting, burning not hap-
to strategic places for harvesting. in is
dimension
supernatural
Mayal
the Kakadu These maneuvers take account of the prey, season, time of day,
region.
3
topography, wind dynamics, and the number of available hunters. Wallaroo hunt-
ing at night described as particularly hazardous, with malevolent spirits
is
attempting deceive the hunters.
to
knowl-
understanding Aboriginal
Systems keys fire
of classification are also to
edge. Beyond taxonomies which recognize discontinuities in nature
biological
Waddy
(Hunn
and assemble named and covert clusters of folk taxa 1977; 1988),
and cosmic
social classification schemes integrate the natural world into the social
humans membership such as a semi-
order. While have individual in a social class,
ways which
same
assigned the categories in
moiety, each species systematically to
is
Chaloupka
may example,
have ethnography of burning. For
implications for the
and shown by the Mayali people, of cer-
Giuliani have that the allocation
(1984)
on
with dependent the
tain grasses (Poaceae) to the semi-moiety associated fire, is
combust
Those which readily and fiercely are in-
species' flammability. species
flammable grasses are assigned
cluded in the same semi-moiety as while less
fire,
another
to social category.
Totemism and
species
Totemic and ecology are also linked.
classification fire
(Buhner
anthropologists 1978, 1979;
have been enduring concern
selection of to
Waddy demonstrates that the distribu-
and
Elkin (1988)
1933; Levi-Strauss 1966),
Waddy
random.
not
tion and sharing of totems among Groote Eylandt clans is
myth,
based on associations in nature as well as
finds that totemic classification
is
Sentimental
taxonomies.
not conceptual thought as with biological
hierarchical
and Peterson has
(1972)
attachment important in totemic beliefs,
also
to locality
is
arrangement
of
shown the spatial
totemism has an adaptive significance in
that
between hu-
erouos and As emblematic indicators of the relationships
territories.
HOWARD
226 No.2
Vol. 16,
mans, and
natural totems
entities places, are inte
must
be environmen
carefully considered to access
knowledge
encoded phenomena.
in
social
Waddy's
In account
(1988) of totemic the cypress pine
classification, Callitris
and
intratropica other related totems are shared by a number of clans, influencing
the distribution of clan territories and sites. This tree is fire-sensitive and requires
management (Bowman Bowman
careful Haynes
1995a, 1995b;
1988, 1993;
et al.
Bowman
and
1985, 1991), (1995b) suggests that the survival and characteristics of
some
stands in environments can only be attributed burning by Aborigi-
to skilled
On
Limmen
nal people. Maria
Island in the Bight of the Gulf of Carpentaria, a
particular cypress pine regarded harmful and knowl-
is as potentially disturbed,
if
edge
of the poisonous nature and
of the tree fear of sickness are widespread (Bradley
McLaughlin
1988; The which
1978/79). sap, used can only be
in sorcery, col-
is
by
lected persons Mara
in a prescribed mythology
custodial role. In the of the local
people, the Plains Kangaroo
deliberately left this cypress on the island rather than
mainland
the reduce damage
to the likelihood of to the tree and the risk of social
harm
(Bradley
probable
1988). It is that local fire regimes have evolved to mini-
mize impact on
the cypress habitat. Similar examples of protection at totemic
fire
places are given by Haynes
and
Jones Lewis Care-
(1985), (1980) (1985, 1989, 1992).
planning
ful to reduce scorch height and may have
to protect tree-dwelling fauna
a similar motivation.
Exclusion from
of
fire places of importance not always Bradley
desirable.
is
(1984, 1995) describes burning
to cleanse country of the of the recently de-
spirit
common
ceased. This
purifying
ritual is necessary before general use of the area
can be resumed. Some
potentially harmful
totemic can be calmed with
sites fire
smoke
must
must
activity
smoke
great care needed with
is as well
fire as substantial environmental knowledge.
While have
I so far furnished an account burning
of in traditional context,
its
the picture from
far complete. The movement
is
of people across the landscape
is
now
influenced by
land and
(Hughes
title legislation
1995), access restrictions,
residence,
vehicles, roads and now
Matches norm
fencelines.
are the for ignition.
Waddy
(1988) describes burning random
as a become
activity carried out as roads
passable
after the monsoonal wet Head
season. and more
Fullagar provide a
(1991)
detailed
description
of vehicle-based burning
where
in a region extensive pastoral
activities dominate land Two
new
use.
points
are
significant here. the use of
First,
technology
does
not mean
necessarily
a discontinuity knowledge with
in cultural
regard
to Lewis
fire.
(1992) is correct in chiding
anthropologists equating tech-
for
nology
with
material and
culture
failing to consider underlying ecological
knowledge. The
second
point wish make
to
I is that ethnobiological studies, in-
cluding
resource management
and
must
fire use, account regional
for specific
environmental and
socio-cultural and
histories, the role of the state in land use
planning and
While
policy.
traditions continue, Aboriginal communities un-
are
maj
management
everyday
practices in
JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY
Winter 1996
227
m
following discussion looks
at related
fire
5
ethnography.
AND
CONFLICT ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH
FIRE,
management
Violation of significant through inappropriate un-
sites fire will
doubtedly have consequences, and and
social ritual responsibility rights of access
will emerge as dominant issues. Gould (1971) has documented one such incident
which
in a desecrated a sacred associated with particular totemic
fire site
macropods. Although was and damage may
the ignition source unclear not have
been
intended, the post-fire discussions escalated into intense anger. Insufficient
information about the culprits and other pressing social needs eventually quelled
the However, Gould an inflammation
situation. highlights the potential for of griev-
ances McConvell comm.)
at a later time. Patrick (pers. has also witnessed a similar
incident in the Kimberley region in which a cache of sacred objects was destroyed.
The
and
storage of sacred objects in carefully selected rocks trees, requires that
fires in the vicinity be controlled. In this instance a fire destroyed the objects placed
and and drama which was
in a tree, amidst the social tension ensued, death con-
sidered to be an appropriate penalty for the arsonists. As these were discovered to
be Europeans the matter was not pursued. Bradley (1995:30) similarly illustra-
is
tive of the emotion and potential hostility which accompanies inappropriate fires.
In regard burning without permission he "Postures of feigned or
to writes: real
anger occur, people issue challenges using digging sticks and crowbars as
still still
The emphasized Warner's
weapons...." seriousness of these events also in (1958)
is
may
note that damage to log coffin burials from deliberate burning of country be
sufficient cause for retaliatory homicide. Social tension from indiscriminate burn-
uncommon.
ing
evidently not
is
and
These incidents raise some pertinent points regarding anthropology the
now
beyond
ethnographic contention that hunter-
orientation of ethnobiology.
It is
gatherers actively manage the landscape, but must not be assumed that fire plans
it
moved
have beyond
are implemented without mishap. Although anthropologists
human-environment (Friedman
Rousseauian views relationships
simplistic of
we "paragons
must be regarding indigenous people as of eco-
1979), cautious of
management. Lewis
wisdom"
unable (1992,
logical (Brunton 1992:1) to err in fire
many
and
1994) has commented on occasional mistakes by Aborigines, in other
Papuan
Tauade,
societies with a highly developed fire technology, such as the loss
and
and people" generate neigh-
of fire control can destroy "trees, gardens, villages
borhood Even the hands of experts a failure of
clashes (Hallpike 1977:204). in
and
judgment management can have enormous environmental social con-
in
fire
and and
playful careless
sequences. Poorly malicious individuals
skilled adults,
have long held an
abound anthropologists
children also in cultures. Political
all
Meyers
Gluckman
Hiatt 1965;
1965;
interest in the study of conflict situations (e.g.
human
immense problems ecology
1986) and this orientation of relevance to in
is
may
be ethnographi-
and therefore
tension
ethnobiology. Situations of related
fire
cally rewarding, by bringing into sharper focus Aboriginal perceptions of ecological
which underpins
and and making organization
entities processes, the decision
management.
resource
HOWARD
228
No.2
Vol.
16,
Poiner has demonstrated
(1985, 1990) the merits of a similar ethnographic
strat
egy her study New
in of the response by community
to bushfires the of the Soutl
Wales town
rural Marulan. While
of not concerned with ecology, Poiner
researcl
's
human
certainly portrays the dynamics of the environment which man
in land
agement
embedded.
drama
is In the social which unfolded, both durine and
afte:
major
e temporarily suspended some
in contexts, while the overal
women
mem
was
underlined. The usual norms eroun
of
became more
community, made many
clear and and
social relationships long-term land
to
ties
which
lifestyle otherwise would
have remained Attachment and
obscure. kin
to
and
country,
the necessity mechanisms
for themes
to resolve conflict, are universal
human
of
existence. Cross-cultural comparison
in the prone Australian envi-
fire
ronment
reinforces the need adopt
to a broader approach and
ethnobiology
to fire
research.
With
regard
to Aboriginal burning,
analysis of conflict resulting from un-
planned
mis-managed
or may
new
conflagrations
reveal aspects of ecology
fire
and
cosmology, and
should throw on
which
light the associated
social organization,
has
received only
4
limited
attention. Furthermore, what has been reported
concerning
the
social organization burning
of frequently Bradley
contradictory.
is
has
(1984, 1995) indicated Yanyuwa
that the
people of the Gulf of Carpentaria
organize burning
along
the lines of complementary Managers
social groups. of
™
country—
matrifiliates—
usually burn hv
or reauest itmiHon
ternal
em
in
unknown
and
rights are exceeded
if the
perpetrators
are strongly Lewis
challenged.
(1989),
Kakadu
in his
material, mem-
points out
that despite
responsibility senior clan
to
women
men,
bers, and may
children
start fires while in flammable country subject
to their knowledge
of appropriate
habitat burning an end
requirements.
in
Yet,
note
Lewis'
to
paper, a
personal communication from Meehan and Williams
is
which
cited
states "most
that: Arnhem
'traditional burning' Land
in carried
[is]
...
women
out by
in
eties the use no
of has
fire gender
or age and number
restrictions, that setfor a
fires
ot purposes
are allowed
burn
to
uncontrolled. Lewis
(1992) describes restrictions
on
intense
fires in rainforest patches
and
for an
ritual totemic reasons, but gives
account
of casually conducted
burning
'corrective'
to clear neglected country in
which
fuel loads
are extremely
high.
Resulting
fires of great intensity are noted as
severely
affecting
rainforest communities,
although Lewis any
does not discuss
negative
ecological
or
social outcomes.
Obviously
totemic or significant
if sites
and
habitats
species are be
to properly managed,
and
the authorization deploy-
ment
ot people
to light must be
fires coordinated some
at Custodial rights
level.
and
the
acquisition
of
knowledge
specialist
relating to the pragmatic and esoteric
aimensions
of
land-care
are the may
crucial which
factors. Conflict be
the context in
ethnographic
insights
are gained.
High-mtensity
corrective burning
the more
is subject of a thorough discussion
by
Lewis
which
(1994) in he
reveals
the Aboriginal which
logic integrates this
practice with
other
traditional management
fire an
Regular burning
activities.
is
Winter 1996 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY
229
by
action necessitated moral and
responsibilities to kin country, so that restorative
even under
fires, conditions considered inappropriate by non-
Aboriginal
au-
fire
may
may
even be with "an almost manic compulsion"
lit for
exam
Lewis, based on information supplied by who was
a biologist present, describes
the burning Maria
of Island to fulfill obligations to a recently deceased kinsman
after a long absence from the island and The
at least fifteen fire-free years. result
was
which
a conflagration reduced almost the whole island to "4,000 hectares of
burnt snags and ash" (Lewis 1994:951) and caused considerable
satisfaction for
same
the traditional owners. This the island that have already discussed the
is in
I
context of a culturally significant and potentially dangerous cypress pine, a spe-
with
cies limited fire tolerance. Consequences for the cypress pine or Maria land
owners unknown.
are
In the context of social change the potential for mishaps has increased, and
new
this creates dilemmas for the application of Aboriginal burning in land man-
agement
programs. Features of the landscape remain a focal point for Aboriginal
people in the construction of their ethnic identity. But as have indicated earlier,
I
traditional patterns of Aboriginal land use have been disrupted and transformed
along with mechanisms knowledge
the for the intergenerational transmission of
and
skills. Peter Latz (1995a:81), a botanist with substantial experience in fire re-
and makes some
search Aboriginal communities, valid points in regard to
Aboriginal
burning:
make The
But only years and years of experience that look easy... only
it's it
trouble ..once your burning system has been stopped one hell of a job
is. it is
Mann
getting back again!. ..This last [fire in the South Australian Ranges]
it
when
was
by problems occur
Aborigines but they didn't realize the that
lit
the fuel had built up. They had been away from their country in the past
A
and the system had broken down... whole of which are sacred in
lot figs,
this country, were burnt out of existence and the rock wallaby 5 which is
some
on
practically extinct this range, has lost of its tucker.
much
be learned
Like Latz (1995a; 1995b), strongly suggest that there to
is
I
from Aboriginal people which can be of benefit to fire ecologists, anthropologists
and government and private land managers. Researchers, however, should be
mindful
burning
that intentional Aboriginal
and
ironmental stewardship, and an understanding of fire behavior
mistakes and unintended outcomes essential Johannes
is (cf.,
«
Lewis
ETHNOBIOLOGY
CONCLUDING FOR
REMARKS: IMPLICATIONS
new
more and required inve
Evidently research strategies are to
ecology and Aboriginal burning. Interdisciplinary dialogue also esse
is
formed anthropological discourse. Systems of ethnobiological cla
incorporate important information but are not an adequate
species level
HOWARD
230 Vol No.2
16,
commented
knowledee. have
I
mis-manage
ment. Loss of control appears more frequent than acknowledged and
fire
is
problems and
are inevitable given the nature of children the inherent disparities
human
may
and
in intentions competence. Social upheaval be a key to revealing
Aboriginal perspectives on environmental phenomena and
ecological processes
as well as the socio-political context of burning. For ethnobiology in general, there
is clearly a case for a broadening of theoretical dimensions as a means of under-
standing the application knowledge
of ethnobiological resource
in practical
management. The open up new ground and
analysis of conflict will ethnographic
may
bridge between
the divide the ethnoscience school and other branches of
anthropological
inquiry.
NOTES
1 The
and
not warranted Stephen Pyne
here. has produced and comprehensive
(1991) a well-crafted
synthesis of existing material from a range of disciplines and makes some interesting com-
ments on
the evolving interdependence and humans.
of Flannery pro-
flora, fire (1995)
another
consuming
in accumulated and
fuel increasing frequency following the extinction of
fire
the herbivorous megafauna Bowman
(cf., 1991). But despite the widespread influence of
Jones' thesis most researchers would
agree that evidence sparse, and the issue will re-
is
main much
contentious until more research done (Bowman and Brown Bowman
is 1986;
1995b; Latz
1995b).
My
ment. have and
witnessed, been many
I involved in, incidents in which experienced per-
made
sonnel have
incorrect judgments and
which have unfore-
lit fires reacted rapidly to
seen
conditions.
A
3 kangaroo and member
relative a
of the family Macropodidae.
4
In 1992 Professor Henry Lewis
wrote:
"... consideration of the social dimensions involved
m
such
have
activities but been
all ignored."
23). This situation has not substantially
(p.
changed
since.
5 See
note
above.
3,
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Chris Healey and
Ian Walters have provided encouragement and
constructi
comments
on
earlier Other
drafts. valuable and have be
criticisms suggestions
made
by
journal appointed my
Henry
referees. Professor Lewis drew
attention
and
his 1991 1994 and
articles kindly
supplied
copies. also thank the Aborigir
I
Areas
Protection Authority
for permission use and Geoi
to unrestricted records,
Chaloupka
and
Pina
Giuliani
for allowing the use of an unpublished manuscri
—
JOURNAL
Winter 1996 OF ETHNOBIOLOGY
231
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