Hunting Kangaroos.
In hunting and killing the kangaroo the natives display great skill, a complete knowledge of the habits of the animal, and often much perseverance and great endurance. Kangaroos are much more numerous now in many parts of Victoria than they were when the lands were in possession of the natives; and though it may appear at present to an inhabitant of the bush that a blackfellow could have no difficulty in procuring a sufficient supply of this game, it was different when the animal was regularly hunted, when it was the prey of the wild dog, and when the tribes had to depend largely on it for food.[1]
Several modes of taking the kangaroo were employed. When a native was living with his family in a district where kangaroos were easily found, he would start off at early morning, with his wives and perhaps his children accompanying him, and look for a feeding ground where there was some shelter. The women and children would not follow his footsteps closely, but keep near enough to invite his attention by some previously-arranged signal, as the movement of the hand, or a sound—as that of a bird—if any one of them should see the game. The hunter himself, keenly interested in the pursuit, would be well prepared for the day's sport. He would have his spears sharpened, his throwing-stick in good order, and his waddy at hand. His basket, slung over his shoulder, would contain, as well as the throwing-stick, perhaps a knife. Cautiously taking his way through the bush, keeping an eye on every animate and inanimate object within the limits of his vision, moving noiselessly, he would at last view the kangaroos feeding in some rather open well-grassed spot. Having observed the direction of the wind, he would so direct his movements as to get to leeward of the game, and he would use all the skill he possessed to approach them as near as possible. He would advance a few steps, keeping his body in one position, and note the behaviour of the kangaroos. The creatures—keen-scented and quick of hearing—would exhibit some alarm perhaps, and the hunter would remain still and motionless until they again began to feed. He would thus advance, sheltered by bushes and trees, until within distance, and then his spear would be thrown. He would rarely miss his aim. As soon as the creature was struck, the women and children would shout with delight, and hasten to the assistance of the sportsman.
- ↑ A squatter holding stations in the north-eastern part of Victoria informs me that a station in his district, which at one time carried twenty thousand sheep, but has since been neglected, and has now on it not more than four thousand, is overrun with kangaroos, opossums, wild cats, and wild dogs. Mobs (consisting of hundreds) of kangaroos eat the grass that should feed sheep. The marsupials have increased in a far greater degree than their natural enemy, the dingo, which lives in this locality a life of ease and pleasure. The run is common ground for all the wild animals of the neighbourhood. There they have their abode, but from time to time they visit neighbouring tracts, and destroy much produce the result of cultivation. The native dog has been almost exterminated in the more open parts of Victoria; and other animals formerly his prey have multiplied exceedingly. I have seen mobs of kangaroos in the Western district so large as to defy even an attempt to make an approximation to the numbers.
Professor McCoy referred to this subject in his essay (Recent Zoology and Palæontology of Victoria) in 1866-67.
