Archaeologists in New South Wales have uncovered a millennium-old dingo burial site that reveals a previously unknown ritual, shedding new light on the deep bond between First Nations people and the canines. The site, located in Kinchega National Park along the Baaka (Darling River) near Menindee Lakes, dates back nearly 1,000 years and includes evidence of a 'feeding' ceremony never before documented archaeologically.
Discovery and Significance
The dingo, a male aged four to seven years, was buried in a midden between 916 and 963 years ago. For about 500 years afterward, the Barkindji people added river mussel shells to the site, a practice researchers describe as a 'feeding' ritual maintained over multiple generations. This is the first time such a practice has been observed in an archaeological context worldwide.
Dr. Amy Way, lead archaeologist from the Australian Museum and the University of Sydney, noted that while Aboriginal dingo burials have been found before, they had not been analyzed in context. 'What was really significant is that we showed the midden was created at the time of burial, so these two processes happened together as a way of interring the dingo into that landscape,' she said.
Injuries and Care
The dingo had healed broken ribs and a broken leg, injuries typical from hunting with kangaroos. 'That it had lived through these injuries and been nursed back to health shows how much the community cared for that animal,' Way added.
Cultural Context
The burial was first identified in 2000 by Barkindji elder Uncle Badger Bates and a National Parks and Wildlife Service archaeologist after roadworks exposed the site. A salvage excavation in September 2023 recovered the remains, following the loss of the skull to floods in 2021.
David Doyle, a Barkindji custodian involved in the excavation, explained that adding to the midden was 'a way of keeping connection and respecting the ancestors.' He noted that dingoes 'were a companion animal right up until colonisation' and are now regionally extinct. 'Some of our Barkindji people still carry dingo as their totem. Even though we don't have it in our region now, it's still significant.'
Broader Implications
The research, funded by the Australian Museum Foundation, shows that Indigenous dingo burial practices extended further north and west along the Baaka system than previously documented. Dr. Kylie Cairns, a conservation biologist at the University of New South Wales not involved in the study, said the excavation highlights 'how some dingoes were really important to First Nations people and kept as companions.'
Cairns emphasized that most dingoes live in the wild and are ecologically and culturally significant. However, she noted that current legislation and practices often fail to reflect this value. 'Something many Australians don't realise is that we're actively killing dingoes in national parks. We need a discussion about managing dingoes to protect livestock while valuing their cultural and ecological importance.'
Her 2023 research found that over half of Australia's dingoes are genetically pure, and a separate study published this week identifies eight genetically distinct dingo populations.
