'Australia'

"Much of human behavior can be explained by watching the wild beasts around us. They are constantly teaching us things about ourselves and the way of the universe, but most people are too blind to watch and listen."
- Suzy Kassem, “Rise Up and Salute the Sun: The Writings of Suzy Kassem”

Upon this planet we call home, one can find a great multitude of forms of life. From the birds in the sky to the creatures beneath the waves, the creatures that move upon the earth to the ones that move below it. They are everywhere. Some can be seen in certain places around the world more than others. One of these places is none other than the Australian continent.

It doesn’t take long for those who visit Australia to see that it has such a wide variety of unique creatures. Birds like the Emu and the Cassowary roam the land, while in the sky the Splendid Fairy-wren and the Tawny Frogmouths take flight.

Alongside the Emu and Cassowary, the land is roamed by creatures such as the Dingo and the Kangaroo; and in the trees the koala makes its home.

While the waters of the continent are host to fish such as the Eel-tailed catfish and the Australian grayling, other creatures like the ever-unique Platypus can be found at times in the waters of Australia and Tasmania. 

Reptiles roam the continent from waters to the desert inlands: the Skink to the Crocodile to the ever venomous Coastal taipan.  Life is everywhere.

Yet like so many other places in the world, many of the creatures of Australia face the constant threat of extinction. Though this is beginning to change with the advances of modern science. In August of 2022, it was announced that the University of Melbourne will partner with a Texas-based Biotechnology company in the effort to bring back the extinct Tasmanian Tiger (Thylacine) (source).

The continent of Australia has many wondrous creatures that call it home. The sounds echo throughout the mountains and valleys, constantly reaffirming that life is bountiful there.  Keep watch for the next blog post in this series, where it will be based on the creatures of Antarctica.

“We don’t own the planet Earth, we belong to it. And we must share it with our wildlife.”
- Steve Irwin

More in this Series: Part 1: North America | Part 2: South America | Part 3: Europe | Part 4: Asia

2/8/2021

The Campbell Library is open to the public Mondays/Fridays (9am-5pm) and Tuesdays/Thursdays (4-7pm). We also offer Front Door Pick Up and half hour appointments for browsing or computer use Wednesdays (9am-5pm) and Tuesdays/Thursdays (9am-4pm).

Knockout by Mia Kang

Mia Kang is many things: a sought-after model, an immigrant, an eating disorder survivor, and a Muay Thai ?ghter. Her ?rst book, Knockout, is the story of how she eschewed normative body standards and learned to use martial arts to rede?ne her sense of self-worth.

When Time Stopped by Ariana Neumann

A Memoir of My Father's War and What Remains // The Neumann family was one of the many families to be persecuted during WWII because they were Jews. Of thirty-four Neumann family members, twenty-five were murdered by the Nazis. Ariana Neumann, one of the surviving Neumann’s daughter, tries to uncover what really happened to her family, and reveal the secrets that her father took with him to the grave.

Spirit Run by Noé Álvarez

A 6,000-Mile Marathon Through North America's Stolen Land // The son of working-class Mexican immigrants flees a life of labor in fruit-packing plants to run in a Native American marathon from Canada to Guatemala. He writes not only of overcoming hunger, thirst, and fear, but also of asserting Indigenous and working-class humanity in a capitalist society where oil extraction, deforestation, and substance abuse wreck communities.

Truganini by Cassandra Pybus

Journey through the apocalypse // The name of Truganini is vaguely familiar to most Australians as 'the last of her race'. She has become an international icon for a monumental tragedy: the extinction of the original people of Tasmania, of which she was the last. For nearly seven decades she lived through a psychological and cultural shift more extreme than most human imaginations could conjure.

If you need help accessing any of these titles or using front door pickup, email or call us and we will be happy to assist you!

View Book Notes PDF archive