First Peoples: Australia

Australia, a multicultural nation of immigrants today, was once isolated for 50,000 years, home to ancient Aboriginal people.
Aboriginal Australians are descendants of the first modern human explorers.
Their DNA holds clues to the survival of our species.

In southeastern Australia, 42,000 years ago, Mungo Man, a significant individual, was buried.
Jim Bowler discovered Mungo Man in 1974 at Lake Mungo, New South Wales.
Lake Mungo was once a lush environment but is now harsh.
Mungo Man's bones were stained with ochre, a pigment brought from afar.
The burial was an elaborate ritual, indicating spiritual yearning.
Mungo Lady, another skeleton, was found nearby with evidence of a funeral ritual involving burning and breaking bones.

Alfred Hadden's collection of indigenous hair samples was analyzed by geneticist Eske Willerslev.
Hair is valuable for DNA analysis because contamination sits on the outside and can be removed.
The analysis of an Aboriginal genome revealed that the first Australians split from the rest of humanity 60 to 70,000 years ago.
They moved out of Africa and adapted to coastal life, island hopping to reach Australia.

Coastal environments offered rich food sources for hunter-gatherers.
Relocating meant trips offshore to nearby islands.
People may have discovered Australia by noticing signs like clouds, birds, or driftwood.
During the ice age, sea levels were 400 feet lower, narrowing the gap between Southeast Asia and Australia to 60 miles.
A single wave of migration occurred around 55,000 years ago.

Nawala Gaberman, a rock shelter, may be the oldest monument in the world.
Archaeologist Bruno David found evidence of human occupation dating back 48,000 to 50,000 years.
The site contains layers of sand and ash with archaeological materials.
Fragments of charcoal were used for dating.
Evidence of art, including ochre pigment, dates back at least 30,000 years.
Paintings of spirits known as Mimi's are present.

Paintings depict animals like the Jennyornis, a giant emu that went extinct 40,000 years ago.
Naracoorte Caves contain fossils of extinct animals.
Rod Wells discovered fossils in 1969, revealing Australia's unique wildlife due to isolation after splitting from Antarctica 50 million years ago.
Examples include the giant marsupial Diprotodon, which was 1.8 meters tall and weighed $1.5$ to $2.5$ tons, and mega kangaroos.

Lake Mungo supported a thriving community with fish and marine life.
Aboriginal ranger Tanya Charles found evidence of emu egg and fish consumption in ancient fireplaces.
Mungo Man's skeleton reveals he was a six-foot-tall adult male in his 40s.
His teeth show wear patterns from processing fiber, possibly for nets.
He had a canine tooth intentionally removed, a traditional Aboriginal practice.

The ice age caused rivers to dry up and forests to disappear, leading to the extinction of giant beasts.
$60\%$ of the Australian population died off.
People used grinding dishes and stones to process seeds for flour.
Isolation posed a threat to survival.

Ecologist Josh Griffiths studies platypuses, whose existence is threatened by weirs fragmenting populations.
Fragmented populations lose genetic diversity and struggle to adapt.
Genetic tests involve taking skin samples to analyze DNA.
Introducing new platypuses can give the creek a genetic boost.

Early Australians survived isolation through trading networks for beads, tools, and ochre.
These networks facilitated genetic exchange between groups.

Ghali Yokoriwa, a Yolnu elder, prepares for the arrival of the spirit Barnum Beer (Venus).
The Yolnu use song and dance as a map.
Shared rituals connect different tribes.
Songlines may date back to original trading networks.

By $1606$ , the Aboriginal population was up to a million people in 300 different language groups, but colonization disrupted their way of life.
In 2013, an ancient skeleton was found where Europeans first arrived.
Mike Westaway analyzed the bones, revealing a woman in her early 30s, 3,500 years old.
The bones were re-buried after genetic testing.
Eske Willerslev oversees DNA analysis to understand population history.
Aboriginal people are interested in regaining information about their past through science.
Comparing modern and ancient DNA samples helps uncover the past.