Aborigines The dark-skinned aborigines moved into Australia about 25,000 years ago, apparently from Southeast Asia. They led a nomadic existence, hunting wild animals and gathering plants for food. The aborigines did not farm. They had only one domesticated animal, a type of dog called a dingo.
When Europeans came on the scene some 300,000 aborigines occupied Aus ralia. They were divided into hundreds of separate groups or tribes. Although the tribes had differences of language and ritual, they were united by common culture. They depended closely on the environment, and regarded animals, plants, and other natural objects as close relations of the human family.