Amadeus Basin—a structural basin with sediments mainly of shelf type, dominantly of sand and shale. It is suggested that the Georgina and Amadeus Basins are the structural remnants of a single large basin of deposition in which the Amadeus Basin represents the proximal shelf, the Georgina Basin the distal shelf or rim, and the Precambrian gneiss of the Harts Range area the location of the deep basin. The Precambrian gneiss shows strong evidence of deep burial and north-south compression at a stage much later than the high-grade metamorphism. The main problem in these two basins is to determine their structural and sedimentational histories so that possible migration directions of oil in relation to the development of structures may be assessed.

amber, amber fluid/liquid—beer: e.g., Hubby's at the pub downing a few glasses of the amber with his mates.

ambo—1. an ambulance. 2. an ambulance driver

amethystine python—Morelia amethistina, Australia's largest snake, growing to lengths of 8.5m, but more commonly 3.5-7.5m. Although long, it is quite slender with an elongated head. The snakes are light to dark brown and can have a dark brown to black zig-zag pattern that sometimes looks like bands. Their underbellies are white or cream coloured. The amethystine python is non-venomous, killing its prey by constriction after grabbing it in its jaws or with its body. The snakes have a prehensile tail (which means they can use their tail to grip things) which helps them move through the trees. Using heat-sensory organs, this python detects its warm-blooded prey—small birds and mammals—but they also eat reptiles and frogs. The python has been known to eat anything from fruit bats to tree kangaroos—the prey it can swallow can be much bigger than itself. It acquires its name from the amethyst-coloured sheen it displays in direct sunlight. They often bask in the sun on tree branches. Amethystine pythons range from north of Townsville in Queensland, to Papua New Guinea, Irian Jaya and Indonesia. They are found in open and closed forests from rainforest to woodland and open scrubland and prefer areas near water, being good swimmers. Mating occurs between June to September and 7-19 eggs are laid. These stick together in a clutch which the female then coils around, shivering her muscles to raise the temperature to keep the eggs warm. Incubation lasts 77-88 days and then the young break through their leathery eggs and, after waiting for up to 48 hours, take off. Also known as the scrub python.

AMF—(see: Australian Multicultural Foundation).

ammonites—came in a range of shapes and sizes from the truck tyre-sized Tropaum imperator to species the size of a garden snail. Their fossils are so common and well known that they’re used to help date other fossils found with them. Their shell identifies them as molluscs or shellfish, called cephalopods. They had the same sort of tentacles and crushing beak as squid and cuttlefish. And a couple of modern cephalopods have the same unusual chambered shell as did ammonites. They couldn't close their shell, as they had no hood or lid to shut behind them when they retreated into their shell. Their shell was less for protection from predators and more a sort of elaborate floatation device. Ammonites only lived in the largest segment at the opening of their shell. The rest of the shell was a series of chambers separated by thin walls. A blood-filled tube connecting the chambers could change the amount of gas and fluid, causing them to rise or sink, but mainly was used to keep them stable or floating at the same level. They could move sideways quite rapidly by using jet propulsion in the some way that squids do, by squirting water from a tube near their mouth. The remains of starfish, small crustaceans such as shrimp and other small marine creatures have been found fossilised in ammonite shells and so we can be pretty confident that that’s what ammonites ate. Their eyes would have been similar to those of a pearly nautilus, their closest living relative. They’re not as complex as ours, but they are good enough to allow them to see reasonably well. Like octopus and squid today, they could sense vibration, but didn’t have any ears as such. There’s a very good chance that ammonites had light blue blood like today’s cephalopods, which have copper-based blood. They are named after the Egyptian god Ammon, who has ram’s horns on his head that look like some of the less coiled kinds of ammonites. They became extinct along with the dinosaurs and marine reptiles 65 million years ago. More than half of the species that lived in the sea died out at this time.

ampurta—Dasycercus hillieri and D. cristicauda, one species with two subspecies. The ampurta is a tiny desert mammal related to the mulgara. Sand-colored fur covers the back of the ampurta fades into a pale grey on the underbelly and chin. It has small rounded ears and a short snout. The first half of its tail has the same coloration as the body, and the second half is covered in black, bushy fur. The tail averages 100mm, the head and body together average 180mm, and the total body weight is about 130g.D. cristicauda is Vulnerable and D. hillieri is Endangered. Its former distribution is uncertain due to the confusion of the two species. Believed to have been common in the eastern and southern Simpson Desert region of South Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory. Found in mature hummock grasslands (spinifex) and cane grass on sand dunes. Major threats are unknown but are probably related to habitat destruction by introduced herbivores such as sheep, cattle, camels and rabbits, predation by feral cats and foxes, and changing fire regimes.

anabranch—a secondary channel of a river that leaves the main channel and rejoins it further downstream. Australia provides a continental setting conducive to the formation of anabranching rivers. Very low relief, within channel vegetation and cohesive fine-grained sediment in an arid environment with declining flow discharges and increasing sedimentation downstream encourage the development of anabranches.

Anangu—an Aborigine, especially one from central Australia (from Western Desert language for 'person'). The Anangu people are the traditional owners of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.

Anangu Pitjantjatjara Land Council—(AP) governs the communities in the Anangu Pitjanjatjara Lands. The AP Council is responsible for overseeing the activities of the different groups and serves the people in the Lands. The council is made up of an executive board that meets bi-monthly and comprises a chairman and ten other members, elected at the annual meeting. All members must be Pitjantjatjara, Yankunytjatjara or Ngaanyatjara.

Anangu Pitjantjatjara Lands—cover an area of 103,000sq km in Central Australia. The lands are nestled among several ranges including the Mann, and is roughly 250km south-west of Uluru by road. This is known as punu puli ('tree' and 'stone') country. The country is mostly mulga scrub. Many communities make up the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Lands. As in most traditional ways with land, it was divided into areas where the boundaries were determined by landform. Each landform description was handed down from generation to generation, through the Dreamings. The areas were managed by a particular clan, language group or extended family group, which was determined a complex but effective kinship system. 'Anangu' is a Pitjantjatjara word, which means 'we the people', and it encompasses all Aboriginal people who speak Pitjantjatjara, Yankunytjatjara and Ngaanyatjara. You need a permit to enter the Pitjantjatjara Lands—usually visitors have connections with community members or are involved in business through one of the many organisations working in the area.

Anbangbang—Aboriginal name for the lower section of the Nourlangie Rock and the surrounding area.

Anbangbang rock shelter—The upper part of Nourlangie Rock is known as Burrunggui; the lower areas are known as Anbangbang. There are three main sites at Burrunggui: a rock shelter (Anbangbang shelter); several rock art sites, including the Lightning Man rock art site (Anbangbang gallery); and Gun-warddehwardde lookout. An archaeological dig at Anbangbang rock shelter in the early 1980s revealed that Aboriginal people have been using the shelter for at least 20,000 years. According to Aboriginal people, Anbangbang rock shelter was used primarily by the Warramal clan, who were traditional owners of the area, and by the neighbouring Badmardi clan, who moved down from the stone country to take advantage of lowland foods from the surrounding woodlands, creeks and billabongs. The Warramal clan has since died out and responsibility for the area has passed to Aboriginal traditional owners from surrounding areas.

anchors—brakes; e.g., I nearly went through the windscreen when he slammed on the anchors.

Andamooka—a little opal-mining town full of stray dogs and strange miners. The roads are barely more than dirt tracks, there are no gardens, and the predominant building materials are corrugated iron, fibro and breeze blocks. Some homes have been built underground as protection against the desert's extremes of temperature. Opal was discovered in the early '30s. Since then the population has fluctuated from 2 to 2000 and is roughly 500 today. There have been periodic great finds, including the famous 'Andamooka opal' that was presented to Queen Elizabeth in 1954. Opal mining is no longer the only source of income: the copper and uranium mine at Olympic Dam employ some inhabitants. The town is situated 600kms north of Adelaide.

Anderson, Alfred William—(1888-1956) butcher and entrepreneur, was born on 4 June 1888 at East Brighton, Melbourne, Victoria. About 1911 he opened a butchery in Perth, WA; because he lacked refrigeration, he gave away leftover meat on Saturdays to gain customers. Moving to Sydney, in April 1918 Anderson set up as a sausages and smallgoods manufacturer on the corner of George and Bathurst streets, and registered two companies, A. W. Anderson Pty Ltd and Anderson's Sausages Pty Ltd. He opened branches in the suburbs and later at Newcastle; by 1923 he also had wholesaling interests at the Homebush Bay abattoirs. In 1924 he set up freezing and canning works at Lismore, and next at Tuncester. To overcome the wholesalers' monopoly at Pyrmont, in 1925 he developed meat-chilling at rural Byron Bay for the Sydney market, leasing premises and improvising rolling-stock by packing ice into ordinary railway-vans. During the Depression he developed the veal trade on the north coast, produced fertiliser by-products from 1933, and acquired meatworks in Queensland at Wallangarra and Karumba. In the late 1940s A. W. Anderson Pty Ltd became large wholesale butchers, specializing in beef, veal and pork, meatworks proprietors, meat exporters, and manufacturers of 'Anderson's Famous Sausages and Smallgoods'; the firm's annual turnover was about £4 million. Concentrating on exports to the Territory of Papua New Guinea, he established a retail butchery at Rabaul and another in a refrigerated barge in Port Moresby. He also helped to set up the Byron Whaling Co. Pty Ltd in 1954. Unconventional, with a streak of showmanship and a grassroots mentality, Anderson liked a gamble: he owned racehorses and bred them at his Warema stud near Cabramatta, Sydney, raced ponies and invested heavily in night trotting until the sport was banned. Known as 'Big Ando' (which he detested), he was over 183cm tall and weighed almost twenty stone (127kg). With wide cheeks, 'a knobby nose', arched eyebrows and 'bright hazel eyes', he was talkative and down-to-earth: he attributed the success of his sausages simply to using the best meat. A diabetic, Anderson died of heart disease on 6 August 1956 at his Strathfield home and was buried in Waverley cemetery.

Anderson, Samuel—(1803-1863) explorer and pioneer agriculturalist, Anderson was the first permanent European settler in Gippsland, Victoria. He was born in Scotland on 25 September 1803 into a wealthy family, educated at Kircudbright Academy and became a journalist in London. He wrote in support of emigration, particularly to the Swan River settlement, and in 1834 he put his words into action and migrated to Australia. Once in Launceston he fitted out a vessel for a venture emulating the expeditions of Batman, Fawkner and Aitken. In 1835, just weeks after Fawkner's party reached Port Phillip, he and partner Robert Massie sailed to the eastern shores of Western Port Bay. They founded an agricultural settlement on Bass River, grew wheat, and established a flour mill, salt works and orchard. Anderson was a keen explorer, and made a number of journeys in the area. In November of that year, Townsend surveyed the inlet naming it Andersons Inlet. He identified and named Townsend Bluff, a prominent feature on the north shore. He also re-discovered veins of coal observed in 1826 by William Hovell, which he used for household purposes as well as forging and milling. In 1837 he was joined by his brother who had some knowledge of medicine and had migrated as a ship's surgeon. In 1841 he dressed a wound in the head of Truganini after the capture of Tasmanian Aborigines at Cape Patterson. In 1842 Anderson and Massie opened a commercial tidal flour mill using the tides at the junction of the Bass River and Ross Creek. The creek was dammed with a sluice gate which held the high tide, to be released to the mill when needed. Water from the dam flowed along a race to the undershot water wheel. The mill ceased operations some time in the 1850s. Samuel Anderson died at San Remo in 1863. He was survived by his brother. The Anderson Peninsula was later named after him.

Anderson brothers—(see: Anderson, Samuel.)

Anderson Inlet—the Port of Anderson Inlet, in the Gippsland region of Victoria. Samuel Anderson, the first permanent European settler in Gippsland, discovered and named the Anderson Inlet. Community efforts to eradicate the Northern Pacific Seastar at Inverloch received the top award in the United Nations Association of Australia World Environment Day Awards 2004. The "Seastar 2004" team of volunteers won the Community Category Award for Best Community Based Environmental Project or Initiative. Located at Inverloch on northern Bass Strait.

Anderson Peninsula—an area characterised by elevated, open pasture. A sedimentary geology that begins with the high cliffs of the Anderson Peninsula descends into the Bass Strait. The peninsula was named after Samuel Anderson, a Scottish immigrant and one-time employee for the Van Dieman’s Land Company, who took up a local grazing lease in 1841. Anderson Peninsula extends from San Remo to Kilcunda, Victoria.

Anderson's Byron Bay Whaling Co—the whaling industry in Byron Bay had a short life. In July 1954, the first whale was taken for Mr Anderson's Byron Bay Whaling Co. The whaling station was built next to his meat works, handy to the railway line. His quota was for 120 humpback whales. This was increased to 150 in 1959, but the yield was lower than at first, and it continued to decline. By 1962 another of the bay's industries had gone.

Anderson's Mill—in 1862, with money generated from the gold and timber industries, the Anderson brothers built Anderson’s Mill in order to tap into the local agricultural and population boom, becoming one of the first food processing hubs of Ballarat. The building was designed by John Anderson, who had trained as a millwright in Scotland. The height of the building reflected the need to use gravity in the milling process, the siting to utilise the water from Birch Creek. The mill is four storeys high and built of bluestone, and powered by an overshot waterwheel 28 feet wide. The Anderson family owned and operated the mill for all of it’s working life—almost 100 years—through boom times, depression and war. But despite its impressive beginnings, the prosperity of the mill was short lived. New railway lines missed Smeaton and the centre of wheat gradually shifted north and west. Wide annual variations in wheat harvests also made it difficult for small scale local millers to obtain regular supplies. After closing in 1957 most of the machinery was sold for scrap, then for nearly twenty years the building began to decay. In 1974 it became one of the first buildings to be included on the Historic Buildings Register. Much-needed repairs were made and mill was finally purchased by the Victorian State Government in 1987. Restoration then began in earnest to preserve the history and beauty of the mill. The building was designed by John Anderson, who had trained as a millwright in Scotland. The mill was owned and operated by the Anderson family for nearly a century, closing down in 1961. The building is listed on the Historic Buildings Register, the National Estate Register of the Australian Heritage Commission, and is also classified by the National Trust. Located in Smeaton, Victoria.

anemonefish—fishes from the subfamily Amphiprioninae in the family Pomacentridae. Thirty species are recognized, one in the genus Premnas, while the remaining are in the genus Amphiprion. In the wild they all form symbiotic mutualisms with sea anemones. Depending on species, anemonefish are overall yellow, orange, or a reddish or blackish color, and many show white bars or patches. The largest can reach a length of 18cm, while the smallest barely can reach 10cm. Anemonefish live at the bottom of shallow seas in sheltered reefs or in shallow lagoons. Anemonefish primarily feed on small zooplankton from the water column, such as copepods and tunicate larvae, with a small portion of their diet coming from algae, with the exception of Amphiprion perideraion, which primarily feeds on algae. Anemonefish and sea anemones have a symbiotic, mutualistic relationship, each providing a number of benefits to the other. The individual species are generally highly host specific, and especially the genera Heteractis and Stichodactyla, and the species Entacmaea quadricolor are frequent anemonefish partners. The sea anemone protects the anemonefish from predators, as well as providing food through the scraps left from the anemone's meals and occasional dead anemone tentacles. In return, the anemonefish defends the anemone from its predators and parasites. The anemone also picks up nutrients from the anemonefish excrement, and functions as a safe nest site. The nitrogen excreted from anemonefish increases the amount of algae incorporated into the tissue of their hosts, which aids the anemone in tissue growth and regeneration. It has been theorized that the anemonefish use their bright coloring to lure small fish to the anemone, and that the activity of the anemonefish results in greater water circulation around the sea anemone. Anemonefish and certain damselfish are among the few species of fish that can avoid the potent poison of a sea anemone. There are several theories about how they can do so: The mucus coating of the fish may be based on sugars rather than proteins. This would mean that anemones fail to recognize the fish as a potential food source and do not fire their nematocysts, or sting organelles. The coevolution of certain species of anemonefish with specific anemone host species may have led to the anemonefish acquiring an immunity to the nematocysts and toxins of their host anemone. In a group of anemonefish there is a strict dominance hierarchy. The largest and most aggressive female is found at the top. Only two anemonefish, a male and a female, in a group reproduce through external fertilization. Anemonefish are sequential hermaphrodites, meaning that they develop into males first and, when they mature, they become females. If the female anemonefish is removed from the group, such as by death, one of the largest and most dominant males will become a female. The remaining males will move up a rank in the hierarchy. Anemonefish lay eggs on any flat surface close to their host anemones. In the wild, anemonefish spawn around the time of the full moon. Depending on the species, they can lay hundreds or thousands of eggs. The male parent guards the eggs until they hatch about six to ten days later, typically two hours after dusk. This fish occurs in tropical marine waters of the Western Central Pacific, and is particularly prevalent in the Great Barrier Reef. Also known as clown fish.

Angahook-Lorne State Park—comprises 22,000ha in the steep, timbered ridges of the eastern Otways and adjacent coastline. Forests of blue gum, mountain ash, messmate and mountain gum cover the hills and gullies. The northern area around Airey’s Inlet is drier, featuring heathlands of great floral diversity. The heathland supports some of the most diverse vegetation in Australia, including 46 species of orchids. Twenty-three threatened plant species have been recorded in the park surveys have also recorded 32 species of mammals, 171 birds, 12 reptiles, 6 amphibians,and 9 freshwater fish. There are 18 threatened faunal species, including the spotted-tail quoll, hooded plover and rufous bristlebird. The Angahook-Lorne Park spans the hinterland from Airey’s Inlet to the settlement of Kennett River. The Angahook-Lorne State Park is located on the easterly slopes of the Otway Ranges near Lorne, in Victoria.

angel cakes—cupcakes made of light sponge with whipped cream 'icing', and two pieces of cupcake stuck in the cream to resemble wings.

angle of the dangle—pertaining to an erection.

Anglesea—the official start of the Great Ocean Road, along the Victorian coast. The town began as a stopover for the mail coaches that plied the southern coastline in the 1850s. In 1865, sporting parties came on horseback through dense ironbark forests to reach this isolated seaside location. Today, Anglesea is a popular holiday destination because of its good beach, of which there are few in the vicinity. Forest reserves and a pine plantation are at the back of the town. Anglesea has been menaced by bushfires since early settlement, the last instance being the Ash Wednesday fires (1983) that destroyed 142 homes. Anglesea has over 2,000 dwellings, of which over half are holiday homes. The Wathaurong people are the traditional owners of the land around Anglesea. Their land covered an area between Queenscliff, Airey’s Inlet and a granitic outcrop known as the You Yangs. Located 35km from Geelong, Victoria.

The Anglican Board of Mission—established in 1850, by the bishops of the then Church of England in Australia. It was originally called the Australasian Board of Missions, and led by the bishops of the Church in Australia and New Zealand. The motivation for its founding was a plea from the Bishop of New Zealand, Bishop Selwyn, for funds to buy a boat from which the Church could take the Gospel to the islands of Melanesia. The fruits of this became the Melanesian Mission, and later the independent Anglican Church of Melanesia, which continues to partner with ABM today. In 1872 the ABM was constituted formally as a Board of the Church, by a canon of General Synod. In the 1880s ABM supported missions to the Indigenous people of Australia, and in 1891 ABM sent the first Anglican missionaries to the island of New Guinea, which became established as a diocese within the Church of England in Australia. The Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea became an independent church in 1976. Throughout the 20th century, ABM was active in supporting missions in the Pacific as well as around the world, including China, Japan, India, Indonesia, and part of Africa. Support for the Diocese of Jerusalem began in the first decades of the 20th century and continues today. ABM sent Australian Anglicans to Korea in the 1950s, and the independent Anglican Church of Korea remains a partner today. The Episcopal Church of the Philippines became a partner of ABM in the early 1990s, as did the Anglican Church of Myanmar. ABM's philosophy is based on a belief in holistic mission—that God calls us to serve people in all aspects of their lives, from the spiritual to the practical. This includes all the evangelistic activities of the church in its witness to the Good News, such as ministry, theological education and training, and the development of Christian worship and liturgy resources. 'Mission' also includes providing health and education services, helping people to build capacity to improve food and water resources, and assisting in economic development initiatives. In all of its work, ABM seeks to serve God through supporting our partners in their local witness and service.

Anglican Church of Australia—the Australian branch of the Church of England.

Anglo-Australian Joint Project—the beginning of Australia's military space involvement (1946—1980), under an English aegis. Development of the Joint Project in the desert regions of South Australia resulted in the construction of Woomera, a restricted-entry town. In its most active period, from around 1955 to 1967, the project employed thousands of personnel in the township, and controlled a rocket test range of some 20 000sq km in central Australia.

Anglo-Celtic—Australian of British or Irish descent.

Angophora—the genus Angophora is closely allied to Corymbia and Eucalyptus (family Myrtaceae) but differs in that it usually has opposite leaves and possesses overlapping, pointed calyx lobes. Angophora costata, or smooth-barked apple, is a large, wide, spreading tree growing to a height of between 15m—25m. The trunk is often gnarled and crooked with a pink to pale grey, sometimes rusty-stained bark. The timber is brittle and limbs tend to fall readily. In nature the butts of such limbs form callused bumps on the trunk and add to the gnarled appearance. The old bark is shed in spring in large flakes with the new salmon-pink bark turning to pale grey before the next shedding. The flowers are white and very showy, being produced in large bunches on terminal corymbs or short panicles. The usual recorded flowering time is December or January. Angophora costata occurs naturally on the sandy soils and stony ridges of southern Queensland forests, extending inland as far as the Warrego district. In NSW it extends from Sydney northwards to the central coast and as far west as Bathurst, being particularly common on Hawkesbury sandstone, where it forms almost pure stands.

angora goat—(rhyming slang) tote (i.e., totalisator). Also known as “billy goat” or “giddy goat”, but TAB administrators preferred the use of “angora goat”.

animal act—a contemptible action: e.g., Betraying his friends was a real animal act.

Anindilyakwa—an Aboriginal people of Groote Eylandt, Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Territory, and their language. The Anindilyakwa culture is distinctive and relatively traditional, and some form of the language is spoken by nearly all people of that ethnicity in all generations. The Anindilyakwa have their own Land Council, created under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act, 1976. Before European settlement there were approximately 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages. These were quite distinct languages which between them included about 600 dialects. These languages had complex grammars, rich vocabularies and subtle ways of describing the world around them. Most indigenous language speakers at the time were multilingual. These languages are also a means of group identification and contain embedded within them much of the culture, social values and world view of the language group. Each language probably had a vocabulary of at least 10,000 words, which is about the size of the receptive vocabulary of the average citizen in any country today. Only about one tenth of the original languages survive today in a relatively healthy state. About a third of the original languages continue to be spoken but are under considerable threat, often being spoken by only a handful of elderly speakers.

ankle—a contemptible, despicable person.

b>ankle-biters—children, particularly young babies or tots; the nippers.

ankylosaur—having the back covered with thick bony plates; thought to have walked with a sprawling gait resembling a lizard's.

Anmatyerre—an Aboriginal tribe that has particularly close links to the Warlpiri tribe, to the extent that many Anmatyerre adopted the Warlpiri sub-section name system for personal identification. The Anmatyerre people were involved as claimants in a number of successful land claims under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976. Ti Tree Station was at the heart of Anmatyerre traditional country and in 1976 the Aboriginal Land Fund Commission purchased the station on behalf of the Anmatyerre people. In 1986 freehold title was granted to an Aboriginal Land Trust pursuant to the Act. By 1980 there were three separate communities of Anmatyerre people living on Ti Tree and in that year the pastoral lease was divided into two separate portions operated by two Aboriginal-owned companies. It proved not viable to maintain two pastoral operations and by 1986 the division had been terminated and a single pastoral enterprise was being operated on Ti Tree. Ti Tree was first established as a pastoral station in 1927. By 1933 almost all Anmatyerre country had been leased by the Crown to pastoral interests and many Anmatyerre lived on these stations. The Aboriginal population at Ti Tree varied in the years between 1944 and 1958 from as few as 20 to as many as 39 but by 1975 there were 120 residents and by 1986 some 300 people lived there.

Anna Creek Station—located in South Australia, it is the largest pastoral lease in the world. Covering over 30,100 sq kms (5.5 million acres), it runs up to 18,000 head of cattle, depending on rain conditions. Anna Creek is huge—bigger than Belgium, half the size of England, five times larger than its nearest United States competitor, and is about 8,000 sq km larger than its nearest rival in the Northern Territory—Alexandria Station. Anna Creek Station was originally located at Strangway Springs when first purchased by Julius Jeffreys and partners John Warren and William Bakewell in January 1863. The partnership mainly ran sheep; even in “The Great Drought Years” between 1864 and 1866 was stocked with 7,300 sheep. Sheep were constantly subjected to attacks by dingos, so cattle became the main focus of the statio,n with limited flocks of sheep being kept about the homestead for domestic purposes.

anorak—a waterproof jacket of cloth or plastic, usually with a hood, of a kind originally used in polar regions; a parka.

another place—the other House of Parliament (used in the House of Representatives to refer to the Senate, and vice versa).

anotherie (just like the otherie)—another one, especially a glass of alcohol: e.g., I'll have anotherie.

ANSTO—Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, a continuation of the body corporate formerly known as the Australian Atomic Energy Commission (AAEC). Formed on 27 April 1987, ANSTO shifted the focus of research away from work on nuclear fuel (power generation in particular), which was the basis of the AAEC's original charter, and towards other peaceful and socially beneficial uses of radionuclides. ANSTO concentrates on radiation and radioisotope applications in the medical, industrial, agricultural and scientific fields. ANSTO is prohibited from undertaking any research into nuclear weapons or nuclear explosives.

Antakarinja—an Aboriginal people of the Breakaways region of far north South Australia. This tribal group has lived in this area for thousands of years. Before white settlement, the name of the area was Umoona, meaning 'long life'. After the white arrived in this area in search of opals, Aboriginal people named this area Kupaku Piti, or, 'white man's hole'. Kupaku is a Muntunjarra word for white man and Piti is an Antakirinja word for hole. The Antakarinja and Muntunjarra are the two traditional owners of this area.

Antarctic beech—Nothofagus moorei mueller, an evergreen Australian tree regarded by scientists as one of the keys to understanding how vegetation evolved and migrated throughout the Southern Hemisphere. Nothofagus is one of the oldest genera of flowering plants in the world, with a fossil record stretching back 80 million years. The distribution of Nothofagus species occurred during the break-up of Gondwana, the Great Southern Land. These giants of the rainforest are remnants of the forests which once covered Antarctica. One of the three Nothofagus species that occur in Australia, the Antarctic Beech, is found in southern Queensland and subtropical New South Wales in Lamington National Park, the Border Ranges, and Barrington Tops. Also known as southern beech and Australian beech.

ante up—1. surrender an article that was souvenired. 2. settle an account.

anteater—any of various mammals feeding on ants and termites: the banded anteater and the numbat are marsupials, and the echidna (spiny anteater) is a monotreme related to the platypus. None are true anteaters.

Antechinus—a genus of tiny, mouse-like marsupial with an extraordinary reproductive cycle. Males engage in a single cycle of spermatogenesis followed by death. There is prolonged copulation of up to 18 hours (presumably "guarding" behaviour), and long-term storage of sperm in the oviduct (females may not ovulate until well after the last male dies). With low sperm numbers and losses from the oviducts, presumably the strategy of multiple matings allows her to store sufficient sperm to fertilize all her eggs.

anthouse plant—Myrmecodia beccarii, an epiphytic plant that grows only in swampy areas of tropical northern Queensland. The gorgeous Apollo jewel butterfly lays a single egg on the top of each anthouse plant. The ants carry the hatched larvae (a caterpillar) inside the plant where the larvae eat out chambers inside the plant, providing more space for the ants. The caterpillar also produces droppings, which are nourishing for the ants, while the ants in turn protect the caterpillar from predators.

anti-clockwise—counter clockwise.

anti-conscription rallies—During WWI, the debate about conscription divided Australia as never before and came to a head with the conscription referenda of 1916 and 1917. In October 1916 the referendum was lost by only 72,476 votes, in a poll of almost two and a half million, and it divided the nation. Friendships, families, social class, religion and jobs were all victims of the debates on the issue. During the campaign, Prime Minister Hughes appealed to the women of Australia to support democracy in keeping Australia free from despotism by voting ‘no’, while the Australian Worker depicted a ‘yes’ vote by women, as "The Blood Vote." It was also labelled, "The Lottery of Death." In December 1917, the country was still deeply divided when it went to the polls to again vote on the issue of conscription. It was again defeated, but this time by a greater majority: 166,588 votes. At the beginning of WWII the conscription debate was revived. In the 1930s the ALP had adopted the policy that while men might be compelled to take up arms to defend their own country, they must not be sent abroad against their will. This less dogmatic view did much to help Curtin’s successful campaign to introduce conscription, in contrast to Hughes’ referenda of 1916 and 1917.

Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 (Qld)—(ADA) legislation designed to promote equality of opportunity for everyone by protecting all people from unfair discrimination in certain areas of activity, and from sexual harassment and certain associated objectionable conduct.

Anti-discrimination Commission Queensland—an independent, statutory body that administers the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991. The Commission seeks to protect and uphold the human rights of people by investigating—and endeavouring to resolve through conciliation—complaints about alleged acts of discrimination, sexual harassment, vilification and other objectionable behaviour prohibited by the Act. The Commission refers complaints that are unable to be resolved by conciliation to the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal for public hearing and determination.

Antikarinja—an Aboriginal language group from the Oodnadatta/Andamooka region of South Australia.

Antipodes—a name given to the general region of Australia and New Zealand, as the polar opposite to the European region.

Antipodes Festival—the largest Greek festival in the world, staged annually in Melbourne. This award-winning cultural event showcases Greek-Australian achievements in commerce and social activity as well as arts, crafts, film, and academic pursuits. Melbourne is the third-largest Greek-speaking city in the world, and the Greek community there is one of the oldest and largest ethnic groups in Australia. The Antipodes festival is taken as a model for other Greek festivals around the world, including Greece itself.

any tick of the clock—1. soon: e.g., He'll be here at any tick of the clock. 2. at a time unknown: e.g., That bomb could go off at any tick of the clock.

ANZAC—Australia and New Zealand Army Corps. Formed in Egypt on December 1914 by the merger of ground forces from the two countries, under one command. The initial operation took place at Gallipoli on 25 April, 1915, where the troops suffered high casualties and quick defeat at the hand of Turkish infantry.

Anzac—1. a soldier in the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (1914-1918). 2. any person, especially a member of the armed services, from Australia or New Zealand. 3. as an adjective, anything in any way associated with an Anzac soldier

Anzac biscuit—a biscuit, the essential ingredients of which are rolled oats and golden syrup. Because they did not require butter – which was rigidly rationed during the war years, and which could go rancid in transit—these biscuits were frequently baked and sent to Anzacs overseas by their female relations, and are still known by the name conferred during that time.

ANZAC Day—probably Australia's most important national occasion. It marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. When war broke out in 1914 Australia had been a federal commonwealth for only fourteen years. The new national government was eager to establish its reputation among the nations of the world. In 1915 Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula to open the way to the Black Sea for the allied navies. The plan was to capture Constantinople (now Istanbul), capital of the Ottoman Empire and an ally of Germany. They landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance from the Turkish defenders. What had been planned as a bold stroke to knock Turkey out of the war quickly became a stalemate, and the campaign dragged on for eight months. At the end of 1915 the allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships. Over 8,000 Australian soldiers had been killed. News of the landing at Gallipoli made a profound impact on Australians at home, and 25 April quickly became the day on which Australians remembered the sacrifice of those who had died in war and an occasion of national commemoration. Commemorative services are held at dawn, the time of the original landing, across the nation. Later in the day ex-servicemen and women meet and join in marches through the major cities and many smaller centres. Commemorative ceremonies are held at war memorials around the country.

Anzac daylily—Hemerocallis hybrida Anzac, a 28" tall daylily. A low-maintenance perennial with dark green, evergreen foliage. Blooms repeatedly, mid-season, with showy, erect red flowers. Tolerances: deer, drought, heat and humidity, pollution, rabbits, seashore, slope, wind.

ANZECC—a forum for member governments to exchange information and experience and to develop coordinated policies in relation to national and international environment and conservation issues. From 2001, the Australian and New Zealand Environment Conservation Council (ANZECC) is no longer an active Ministerial Council.

AO—1. adults only. 2. Officer of the Order of Australia.

AOB—any other business.

AOT—arse over tit; upside down; fall over heavily: e.g., I broke my leg when my horse went AOT.

APC—(armpits and crotch) a quick and perfunctory body wash.

Apollo Bay—a seaside resort and fishing port in the foothills of the Otway Ranges, with a large fleet scouring the Southern Ocean for crayfish, shark, whiting, flathead and snapper. Apollo Bay was named in 1845 by Captain Loutit after his boat, the Apollo, after having sheltered there during a storm. The area was known from around 1800 when sealers & whalers landed there and used Point Bunbury, and it was here that the Henty brothers established a sub-whaling station in the 1840s. The first major European settlement occurred in 1850, when timber cutters moved into the district. Completion of the Great Ocean Road in 1932 assured its present tourist status. Apollo Bay is one of the many entry points to the Otway Ranges and the Otway National Park. Located 186km south-west of Melbourne on the Great Ocean Road, Victoria.

Apollo jewell butterfly—Hypochrysops apollo apollo, an exquisite butterfly with a high degree of adaptation to its environment. Confined to coastal swamps of paperbark or mangrove, as providers of a substrate for the anthouse plant on which it feeds. Distribution of the butterfly is from Cooktown to Ingham. At Kuranda, the Apollo jewell and the anthouse plant in which it pupates were previously known to occur, but these populations were destroyed by burning and clearing.

apostle bird—Struthidea cinerea, a species of Australian mud-nesting bird. Their nests are large and dome-shaped, with a spout-like entrance. Two types are constructed, one for nesting and a number of others for communal-night roosting. They are never far from water, needing it to build their mud nests. In dry seasons, the birds may substitute emu dung for mud. After rain, the birds become excited and like to play with mud. Females are slightly larger than males, with longer tails. These birds spend much of their time on or near the ground in family groups of from nine to twelve birds. A dominant male, several mature females and some younger birds make up the group, which spends much of the time on or near the ground feeding on insects and playing chasey in and around the trees. Calling to one another, chattering loudly and huddling together when disturbed, they usually live in eucalypt woodland and mallee of inland New South Wales and Victoria, extending into South Australia with an outpost in the Northern Territory.

Apostles, The—(see: The Twelve Apostles).

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