Home/Curriculum resources/Caring for Country/Case Study 2: Birak season on Noongar Country (South west corner of Western Australia)
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Humanities and Social Sciences, Science, English, The Arts
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Foundation, Level 1, Level 2
Case Study 2: Birak season on Noongar Country (South west corner of Western Australia)
This case study is a part of the Caring for Country resource.
Western Australian Christmas tree (Nuytsia floribunda). Photographer: Gnangarra. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Used under licence: CC BY 2.5 AU
Case Study 2: Birak season on Noongar Country (South west corner of Western Australia)
During Birak, the first of the Noongar six seasons, hot easterly winds and the bright red flowers of the paperbark and orange flowers of the Christmas tree signal that mullet have gathered in estuaries and coastal lakes. Noongar People respond by moving to the coast, setting fish traps and netting only plentiful schools, ensuring the resource endures for the next season. 0
Community
Noongar Country spans the south west corner of Western Australia, from Jurien Bay to Esperance. Birak (December–January) is known locally as the “hot and dry” time, characterised by morning easterlies and afternoon sea breezes. 0
Seasonal or sensory cues
Birak announces itself through feeling the hot wind against the skin and seeing splashes of red from the flowering paperbark (Melaleuca spp.) and yellow from the Western Australian Christmas tree (Nuytsia floribunda). Both signs cue Elders that coastal fish such as mullet and herring have fattened and are schooling near the shore. 0
Caring action
Noongar People travel from inland towards the coast. Using woven traps, spears or nets, they harvest mullet in large but sustainable numbers while leaving smaller fish and breeding stock. After several weeks the Noongar People return inland, allowing the fish population, and the estuarine ecosystem, to recover. 0
Guided by hot easterlies and red blossoms, Noongar People undertake the following actions:
Selective harvest – woven traps and scoop nets target the largest mullet while smaller fish slip through keeping fish stocks strong for the next Birak.
Temporary camps – coastal shelters are dismantled after the run, and people move inland, giving estuaries time to recover. 0 0
Why it matters
This practice exemplifies an Indigenous ecological calendar in which wind, flower and fish are read together. It teaches reciprocity; harvest is timed for natural abundance, and people withdraw when signs shift. The seasonal migration also renews social ties as families meet, trade and pass knowledge to children on Country.
“It is an important part of Noongar custom and lore to take only what you need from nature in order to maintain biodiversity. By eating foods when they are abundant and in season, natural resources are not depleted and will still be available for the next year. As guardians of our country, we achieved balance and adaptability through thousands of years of living in harmony with the bush. Our knowledge of the seasons and managing the land was given to us by the Waugal and passed down by our Elders.” 0
Related case studies within this resources:
Case Study 1: Sugarbag season on Yolngu Country (North east Arnhem Land, Northern Territory)
Stringybark blossoms and buzzing “sugarbag” bees guide Yolngu People to harvest bush honey sustainably on Arnhem Land.
Case Study 3: Wattle blossoms signal cool burns on Banbai Nation (Wattleridge, New South Wales)
When wattles burst into bright yellow bloom, Banbai Traditional Owners know it is ‘time to begin cool, low intensity cultural burns that keep their Wattleridge woodlands healthy and safe.
Case Study 4: Drift log harvest in Kuki season on Masig (Torres Strait)
Drift logs of Tuku (Nipa) and Bissi (Sago) – known as bethey (Kala Lagaw Ya) and sap/sarp (Meriam Mir) – wash onto Masig’s shore during Kuki season. Nothing is wasted: the logs respectfully gathered and carved into canoes, drums, and building timbers, refacing totemic relationships and the principle that people care for Country and Country cares for them.
Case Study 5: Flooding and reed care in Parnati on Kaurna Country (Adelaide Plains, South Australia)
When dawn fog and floodwater spread across the reed beds in Parnati (Autumn), Kaurna People harvest only the tallest reeds for canoes and shelters, leaving shorter stems so nesting birdlife remain safe.
Case Study 6: Stone eel traps in Kooyang on Gariwerd Country (Grampians, Victoria)
When late summer heat shrinks the creeks and stars blaze in the Kooyang night sky, Djab Wurrung and Jardwadjali Peoples rebuild low stone traps to catch a share of fat eels, then open the walls so young fish and fresh water can keep moving upstream.
Case Study 7: Ngangkari Ngura (Healing Country) – Betty Muffler and Maringka Burton
Commissioned for the 65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art exhibition, this collaborative canvas by two Anangu Ngangkari healers celebrates their Tjukurpa and shows how ancestral powers are used to heal both people and Country.
Case Study 8: The Limmen Bight River – My Mother Country – Ginger Riley Munduwalawala
From the 65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art exhibition, this luminous aerial view of south east Arnhem Land weaves snake ancestor Garimala and sea eagle Ngak Ngak into the landscape, revealing Riley’s living connection to his Mother Country.
Case Study 9: Quarta-Tooma (Ormiston Gorge) – Albert Namatjira
Painted outdoors and shown in the 65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art exhibition, this vibrant watercolour combines Western technique with Western Aranda knowledge, portraying Tjoritja’s cliffs, river and sky as a single, living Country.