Sightings, reports and myths (plus a flying fish!)
A dive into the stories of some legendary aquatic monsters of the Aboriginal and Pacific mythologies. This episode touches on a small number of terrifying sea creatures – some from Aboriginal tales; some tied to the myths of our neighbours in New Zealand; and others from the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea.
Sources
By Creature
Bunyip
- The Land (Sydney, NSW : 1911 – 1954) Fri 8 Feb 1918, Page 12
- Noonuccal, Oodgeroo {also known as Kath Walker}, 1972. Stradbroke dreamtime, Pymble, N.S.W. : Angus & Robertson
- Smith, M., 1996. Bunyips & Bigfoots: In Search of Australia’s Mystery Animals. Millennium Books.
Hawkesbury River Monster
- The Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld. : 1872 – 1947) Thu 11 Sep 1924, Page 5
- The Evening News (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1924 – 1941) Tue 28 Jul 1931, Page 5
Taniwha
- Basil Keane, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
- Reed, A.W., 2004. Reed book of Māori mythology. Raupo.
Pelorus Jack
Adaro
- Knappert, J., 1992. Pacific mythology: an encyclopedia of myth and legend. HarperCollins.
- Bane, T., 2016. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. Jefferson: McFarland and Company. Inc.[Google Scholar].
Pairío
- Landtman, G., 1917. The Folk-tales of the Kiwai Papuans. Acta Societatis Scientiarium Fennicae, t. XLVII, Helsingfors.
- Landtman, G., 1927. The Kiwai Papuans of British New Guinea. MacMillan and Co. Limited, London.
Additional information
- Billabong – What is a billabong?
- Aboriginal word pronunciation – General guidelines with sample audio – manikay.com
- General creature information by region
- Meaning of ‘kia ora’ – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVDu0tJHTnY
- Meaning of ‘didjurigura yanu’ – https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=10155057735269015