1,000-year-old burial reveals close bonds between people and dingoes

For some ancient Aboriginal Australian communities, dingoes were part of the family.

See full article...

 

[SetsChaos]

Even Dingos had their goodest boys.

 

[=j]

On the one hand, I am glad that they didn't go digging around willy-nilly to see what else they could find. On the other hand, I am intensely curious as to whether humans were also buried at the same site.

 

[Redsnertz]

Anybody else find it faintly amusing that it was a tribe named Barkindji that buried a "dog"? (Yep, I'm aware dingoes and dog lineages branched a long time ago. Not sure if dingoes bark. Still faintly amusing.)

 

[AusPeter]

Wow, and I thought that flat earther's had a weird idea about the locations of things.

Darling River, in Western Australia

@Kionan That just ain't right (Ina foghorn leghorn voice)

 

[cire]

I think the title would hit harder if changed "decades" to "centuries" (which the article itself seems to say?)

 

[mariogil]

I think those of us that have spent time in the desert with dogs can relate to this, strongly. It is that way for me.

 

[Stinkoman]

Spoiler

View attachment 135275

FFS, it's not funny. What happened to the baby and the parents was awful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Azaria_Chamberlain

 

[NeoQuasar]

Anybody else find it faintly amusing that it was a tribe named Barkindji that buried a "dog"? (Yep, I'm aware dingoes and dog lineages branched a long time ago. Not sure if dingoes bark. Still faintly amusing.)

The wiki article I just read as a result of this article claims that barking is less than 5% of dingo vocalizations.

 

[bjn]

Interesting article, one error, the Darling River doesn’t flow through the state of Western Australian, it is completely within the state of New South Wales

 

[ShortOrder]

So are dingos no longer domesticated? And if not, could they be re-domesticated?

 

[uhuznaa]

"Australian Aboriginals cared for a dingo’s grave for decades"
"They found that the Barkindji ancestors had buried the dingo with the same care and ceremony as any beloved human member of the community and looked after the grave for centuries."



Decades or centuries?

 

[Lord Bayaz]

FFS, it's not funny. What happened to the baby and the parents was awful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Azaria_Chamberlain

Oh damn, that’s horrible. I didn’t know that. Why would someone make a joke like that.

 

[Donkey Kong]

Oh damn, that’s horrible. I didn’t know that. Why would someone make a joke like that.

At the time the media really went hard slandering the parents for whatever reason and the kid's disappearance was fairly suspicious (mostly due to crummy policework if I remember correctly). It took a full 8 years from the incident for the mom's name to be cleared and the clearing never really got the press coverage that the original disappearance did.

Just one of those sad stories like the McDonalds hot coffee lawsuit that the public got on the wrong side of, was made into a running joke, and the eventual correction never reached critical mass.

 

[MrMcLargeHuge]

So are dingos no longer domesticated? And if not, could they be re-domesticated?

Dingoes are essentially feral dogs (though this is debated). So, yes.

 

[chantries]

Interesting article, one error, the Darling River doesn’t flow through the state of Western Australian, it is completely within the state of New South Wales

I think Wikipedia may clear this up: the Barkindji (or, according to WP, the Paakantyi) lived in "Far West New South Wales", which actually has its own WP entry.

 

[Tagbert]

Oh damn, that’s horrible. I didn’t know that. Why would someone make a joke like that.

I think, for a long time, there was confusion about what had really happened and many people didn't believe that a dingo really did it. It was seen as a false story to cover up a murder.

 

[mmorales]

Interesting article, one error, the Darling River doesn’t flow through the state of Western Australian, it is completely within the state of New South Wales

I think the phrasing of Australian Outback might have worked better? I think the intention was not to imply the state of Western Australia, or even the geographic western part of the continent, but the outback which is 'western Australia' but extends almost to the Eastern coast. Kind of like how New Yorkers think of Ohio as 'mid west'.

 

[Fatesrider]

"Australian Aboriginals cared for a dingo’s grave for decades"
"They found that the Barkindji ancestors had buried the dingo with the same care and ceremony as any beloved human member of the community and looked after the grave for centuries."



Decades or centuries?

I'd EXPECT decades.

Lore may keep something going, and Aborigines, while semi-nomadic, had their territories, and an oral tradition. So I can see how they'd pay respects to a critter long after it had died. But not for more than a generation or two.

 

[bjn]

I think Wikipedia may clear this up: the Barkindji (or, according to WP, the Paakantyi) lived in "Far West New South Wales", which actually has its own WP entry.

The article says “an area along the Baaka, or Darling River, in Western Australia.” To any Australian (including me, a New South Welshman) the capitalisation of the words “Western Australia” means the state on the other side of the country from New South Wales, the state the Baaka/Darling is actually in. What was probably meant was “In western NSW”, but it’s not what the words say.

 

[Cold Fussion]

I think, for a long time, there was confusion about what had really happened and many people didn't believe that a dingo really did it. It was seen as a false story to cover up a murder.

"Confusion" is about the most charitable explanation you could possibly give for this appalling saga.

 

[Wtcher]

I just want to thank Kiona and Ars for this article. It's interesting and adds the breadth of content I expect from Arstechnica.

 

[RadarLuv]

I'd EXPECT decades.

Lore may keep something going, and Aborigines, while semi-nomadic, had their territories, and an oral tradition. So I can see how they'd pay respects to a critter long after it had died. But not for more than a generation or two.

Centuries does seem pretty surprising. But the abstract for the original paper in Australian Archeology states

“Buried nearly 1,000 years ago, the Garli was interred within a riverside midden that continued to be added to by Barkindji Ancestors for approximately 500 years thereafter.”

 

[Faceless Man]

Wow, and I thought that flat earther's had a weird idea about the locations of things.



@Kionan That just ain't right (Ina foghorn leghorn voice)

I think the phrasing of Australian Outback might have worked better? I think the intention was not to imply the state of Western Australia, or even the geographic western part of the continent, but the outback which is 'western Australia' but extends almost to the Eastern coast. Kind of like how New Yorkers think of Ohio as 'mid west'.

Presumably the people reporting on it are from Sydney, where Paramatta counts as the Far West.

"Australian Outback" is a poorly defined term, and wouldn't do much good in pinning down the location. And it's not "western Australia", the only thing it's really West of is the Great Dividing Range, which runs down the Eastern seaboard. Calling it "Western Australia" is closer to thinking Ohio is next to California.

[EDIT TO CLARIFY] Noticed this might be a bit confusing. I'm referring to the Darling River not being in either "Western Australia" or even "the West of Australia". It is West of the Great Dividing Range, and arguably in the far West of New South Wales, but that's it.

"The outback" is a generic term for anywhere outside the major population centres, covering a wide swathe of the country. The definition is rather imprecise, and probably a touch relative. What people in the cities might think of as "outback" may be very different to people in more rural areas.

 

[crepuscularbrolly]

At the time the media really went hard slandering the parents for whatever reason and the kid's disappearance was fairly suspicious (mostly due to crummy policework if I remember correctly). It took a full 8 years from the incident for the mom's name to be cleared and the clearing never really got the press coverage that the original disappearance did.

Just one of those sad stories like the McDonalds hot coffee lawsuit that the public got on the wrong side of, was made into a running joke, and the eventual correction never reached critical mass.

Things I hate about Gen X for $200, Alex. (Disclaimer: I am Gen X.)

 

[shayne.oneill]

Anybody else find it faintly amusing that it was a tribe named Barkindji that buried a "dog"? (Yep, I'm aware dingoes and dog lineages branched a long time ago. Not sure if dingoes bark. Still faintly amusing.)

Dingos are pretty much domestic dogs with only about 5000 years since they branched from other dogs, they are not fully a separate species, though there are some subtle differences. They don't really bark though they can. Their instinct is to howl. They are good hunters compared to domestic dogs that tend to be unskilled without training.

And yeah there is definitely a strong bond with aboriginal follks. I was speaking to an elder in the south once about them, and he told me that they where considered full members of their masters tribes, and in their history, sometimes elder meetings would include a seat in the circle for the elder dingo, although the dingo wouldn't contribute much except antics and general goodest boy behavior

Also, WA is not "The outback". For most of us in WA, "The Outback" is anything east of kalgoorlie, including most of South Australia and the Northern Territory. Its a description of the semi-arid and arid landscapes that cover most of the country. Sparse trees, spindly bushes, kangaroos, emus, and red sand. The closest analogue in the american experience might be rural Arizona.

 

[Antron Argaiv]

Centuries does seem pretty surprising. But the abstract for the original paper in Australian Archeology states

“Buried nearly 1,000 years ago, the Garli was interred within a riverside midden that continued to be added to by Barkindji Ancestors for approximately 500 years thereafter.”

W eknow so little about these people. Thanks for the window into their culture.

 

[SubWoofer2]

Dingoes are essentially feral dogs (though this is debated). So, yes.

There's a dingo farm (ranch, for US readers?) near Castlemaine in Victoria. Where I was told by one of the operators that he was convinced the Australian RSPCA had an old-fashioned blind hatred for dingoes and so any dingo-related activity or policy positions was more along the lines of seeing them culled.

They are magnificent animals but have a different style of thinking to border collies and kelpies. Their trickster streak is remarkable.

I think it is drawing a long bow to say that the reason subsequent rubbish (shells) were dumped on top of the grave was out of reverence. It was probably just the place the tribe gathered for that particular foodstuff.

Aboriginal oral tradition is robust and well-tested; refer to eyewitness accounts of volcanoes erupting in west Victoria and the sea filling Port Phillip Bay. These events were thousands of years ago; this burial is by comparison relatively new, being mere centuries.

But by all means impose your values and insights against the original owners of the land and their continuous habitation; and the archaeologists who have reviewed their knowledge.

 

[dlanods]

Interesting article, one error, the Darling River doesn’t flow through the state of Western Australian, it is completely within the state of New South Wales

It's even correct in the second sentence: "Archaeologists recently studied the burial in what’s now New South Wales, Australia." before being incorrect in "Kinchega National Park, an area along the Baaka, or Darling River, in Western Australia."

Definitely threw me for a loop.

 

[dlanods]

Presumably the people reporting on it are from Sydney, where Paramatta counts as the Far West.

"Australian Outback" is a poorly defined term, and wouldn't do much good in pinning down the location. And it's not "western Australia", the only thing it's really West of is the Great Dividing Range, which runs down the Eastern seaboard. Calling it "Western Australia" is closer to thinking Ohio is next to California.

Given this is an American site and an American author, I think it's far more likely it's a cross-continental minor stuff-up rather than someone from Sydney not knowing where the Darling River of Murray-Darling fame is (or the Menindee Lakes for that matter).

 

[SomewhereAroundBarstow]

I am having a surprisingly emotional reaction to this story. Perhaps it's because I'm still missing my dog and this proof of the universal human ability to love and care for other species is tugging at my heartstrings. Garli was a very good boy.

 

[Veritas super omens]

Presumably the people reporting on it are from Sydney, where Paramatta counts as the Far West.

"Australian Outback" is a poorly defined term, and wouldn't do much good in pinning down the location. And it's not "western Australia", the only thing it's really West of is the Great Dividing Range, which runs down the Eastern seaboard. Calling it "Western Australia" is closer to thinking Ohio is next to California.

or that San Francisco is northern California...

 

[NewAndZealer]

At the time the media really went hard slandering the parents for whatever reason and the kid's disappearance was fairly suspicious (mostly due to crummy policework if I remember correctly). It took a full 8 years from the incident for the mom's name to be cleared and the clearing never really got the press coverage that the original disappearance did.

Just one of those sad stories like the McDonalds hot coffee lawsuit that the public got on the wrong side of, was made into a running joke, and the eventual correction never reached critical mass.

Meryl Streep, who usually does much better, had such an awful Australian accent in the movie that the line was made funny despite its terrible meaning.

 

[Faceless Man]

Given this is an American site and an American author, I think it's far more likely it's a cross-continental minor stuff-up rather than someone from Sydney not knowing where the Darling River of Murray-Darling fame is (or the Menindee Lakes for that matter).

It's not that they don't know where it is, it's just that they consider anything West of Strathfield as being "The Far West of the State".

You get the same thing in other states. Brisbane has an interesting relationship with North, for example.

 

[Faceless Man]

Meryl Streep, who usually does much better, had such an awful Australian accent in the movie that the line was made funny despite its terrible meaning.

It wasn't quite as bad as that, have you actually heard Lindy Chamberlain speak?

She was from NZ anyway. Although they moved when she was less than 2 years old.

 

[Marlor_AU]

At the time the media really went hard slandering the parents for whatever reason and the kid's disappearance was fairly suspicious (mostly due to crummy policework if I remember correctly). It took a full 8 years from the incident for the mom's name to be cleared and the clearing never really got the press coverage that the original disappearance did.

"For whatever reason" was mostly because the parents were reserved, stoic, and didn't show emotion. The general public and media thought this was inappropriate – the mother should have shown more tears if she was truly innocent. It was scapegoating of someone who seemed a bit odd and acted differently to expectations.

The parents also came from a religion (Seventh-Day Adventists) that was easily presented as being "weird" by the media. Some tabloids went as far as presenting it as some kind of child-sacrificing cult. Presumably, people reading their morning newspaper (while eating a bowl of Cornflakes or Weet-Bix) got right on board with this, as anything unfamiliar is to be feared.

 

[SomewhereAroundBarstow]

Also, WA is not "The outback". For most of us in WA, "The Outback" is anything east of kalgoorlie, including most of South Australia and the Northern Territory. Its a description of the semi-arid and arid landscapes that cover most of the country. Sparse trees, spindly bushes, kangaroos, emus, and red sand. The closest analogue in the american experience might be rural Arizona.

The State of Washington would like to take this opportunity to register its annoyance with reading about things happening in WA only to realize the news is from Australia.

 

[SomewhereAroundBarstow]

They are magnificent animals but have a different style of thinking to border collies and kelpies. Their trickster streak is remarkable.

They seem a lot like North American coyotes in that aspect of their character. We've got coyotes around my house that sometimes seem to start howling just because it amuses them to get the domestic dogs riled up.

Incidentally, coyotes are considered a separate species from wolves and dogs but can breed with them to produce fertile hybrids.