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Until European settlement of Australia 200 years ago, Aborigines lived as nom adic hunter-gatherers all over the continent under widely varying geographic and climatic conditions. Successful survival depended on a comprehensive knowledge of the flora and fauna of their territory. Available data suggest that they were physically fit and lean, and consumed a varied diet in which animal foods were a major component. Despite this, the diet was not high in fat, as wild animal carcasses have very low fat contents through most of the year, and the meat is extremely lean. Everything on an animal carcass was eaten, including the small fat depots and organ meats (which were highly prized), bone marrow, some stomach contents, peritoneal fluid and blood. A wide variety of uncultivated plant foods was eaten in the traditional diet: roots, starchy tubers, seeds, fruits and nuts. The plant foods were generally high in fibre and …