Environmental World History Essay

New Zealand and Australia

Agenda

• Lecture

• Primary source analysis [post response to Blackboard]

• HW: no reading quiz-- read Ross “Intro” and prepare discussion questions for Tuesday’s class (I’ll email these out tomorrow)

• HW: prepare presentations

https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/videos/798-tectonic-plates

Climate

Fauna Species

New Zealand

• Islands had birds, lizards, sea mammals, and bats

• Less diverse than other Pacific islands  adaptive radiation • But abundant numbers

Australia

• Gondwana’s marsupials and monotremes

• First placental mammals were humans 60,000 y.a.

• few new plant/animal species after 80 million years

ago

Aborigines, Land & Animals • Largely forested continent fed

megafauna (100 kg+ animals) 

returned nutrients to soil

• Many theories about megafauna

collapse

• No grazing placental mammals or

crops = remained semi nomadic

hunter-gatherers

• Use of fire = formed scrub

landscape  attractive to British

settlers

Polynesians, Land & Animals • 13/14th centuries: Maori arrival in NZ

• Plentiful animals = protein boost & massive population growth

• Flora not adapted to fire  Maori hunting fires made

grasslands

• Debate: 15th c. societal collapse/fighting OR transition to

agriculture?

Europeans in Oceania

• 16th century: Spanish and Portuguese arrived

• 17th century: Dutch displaced

• Tasman explored Australia, part of New Zealand

• All explorers wanted spices from Molucca islands (modern: Indonesia)

James Cook (1728-79) • Three voyages in Oceania

• Scientific (categorizing

species, observing Venus

transit)

• Secret instructions:

discover southern

continent

• Influenced British ideas of

AU and NZ

• Killed on Hawaii

Don Garden argues Australia exploited because:

•Christianity •Capitalism •Contempt

New Zealand

“So well was ground tilld that I have seldom seen even in the gardens of curious (“careful”) people land better broke down…” sweet potatoes “ranged in rows… all laid by a line most regularly” and other vegetables “set in small hollows or dishes much as we do in England.” – Joseph Banks botanist onboard Endeavor

New Zealand

•Maori seen as working, therefore owning land

•More readily assimilated

•Couldn’t just take land

•Nevertheless: different ideas of ownership

•Result: confusion among Brits how to purchase land

Primary Source Reflection on Blackboard: 1. What differences do you see in descriptions – cite specific

examples? [4 pts]

2. What impression does Cook have of each group? How can you

tell? [4 pts]

3. How do you think this influenced Europeans’ treatment of people

or land at each location? Why do you think that was? [4 pts]

4. Respond to a classmate’s post [4 points]

• Why do you agree or disagree with their assessment? Would

you point out anything in Cook’s descriptions that your

classmate perhaps missed that may change her or his opinion

of what the source reveals?