Avian Exploitation, Customary Ornithology & Sustainable Oology

1. Avian Ethno-Ornithology and Seasonal Phenology

The wetlands, jarrah forests, and coastal islands of the Bibbullmun nation supported exceptionally diverse avian populations, including emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae, weetj), black swans (Cygnus atratus, maali), Australian pelicans (Pelecanus conspicillatus, wadarn), and numerous species of ducks, teals, and cormorants.¹ Bibbullmun customary ornithology recognised fine distinctions in bird vocalizations, molting seasons, and migratory paths.² Birds were not merely hunted for meat; their feathers provided ceremonial adornment, down provided bedding insulation, long leg bones were shaped into awls and needles, and avian behaviors served as precise ecological calendar indicators.³

2. Molting Season Harvesting and Waterfowl Drives

A primary seasonal harvest occurred during late winter (Makuru) and early spring (Djilba), when black swans underwent an annual post-breeding molt, shedding primary flight feathers and rendering them temporarily flightless for two to three weeks.⁴ Clan groups converged upon shallow coastal lakes and estuaries, forming coordinated lines of waders across the water.⁵ Using light bark canoes and swimming formations, hunters guided flightless swans into dense reed beds along the shoreline, where birds were captured by hand or dispatched with curved throwing sticks (dowak).⁶

3. Emu Ambush Strategies: Calls, Blinds, and Poisoned Waterholes

Hunting the large, swift emu required specialized stalking and ambush technologies.⁷ Solitary hunters constructed camouflaged brush blinds along known game trails leading to waterholes.⁸ Utilising a hollowed wooden call tube or hand-resonating palms, hunters mimicked the deep guttural drumming call of the female emu, drawing territorial males within close range (under 10 meters) where they were struck with heavy spears.⁹ In arid sandplain environments, hunters occasionally placed crushed leaves of poisonous pituri or native nightshades into small rock basins frequented by emus, stupefying the birds without rendering the harvested meat toxic to humans.¹⁰

4. Sustainable Oology and Breeding Colony Protection

Egg harvesting (oology) was governed by strict custodial quotas.¹¹ Harvesters never emptied an emu or swan nest entirely; customary law required leaving a minimum number of viable eggs (typically two or three) to ensure the nesting parent continued brooding.¹² Furthermore, harvesting was restricted to the early breeding phase; eggs containing formed embryos were protected under strict cultural avoidance rules, preserving reproductive recruitment across generations.¹³