After a Day of Fishing and Gathering

A large canoe returns to its home village at dusk, after a day of fishing and gathering. Several adults and children often spend the whole day foraging the mangroves for mollusks, crustacea, wild fruit and edible leaves.

Kal Muller 2004

Temporary Fishing Camps

Temporary fishing camps are set up on beaches near estuaries to take advantage of excellent catches. The Kamoro rarely venture far out to sea. Large animals such as turtles, sharks and big fish are harpooned, others caught with nets. Hook-and-line fishing is rare.

Kal Muller 2004

Food Preparation

Kamoro housewife grills fish and boils a cassowary egg. With a sago base and fish for protein, there are many other items added to vary the diet, with natural products hunted or gathered oportunistically.

Kal Muller 2004

Kamoro Diet

Two huge cassowary eggs and some grilled fish will make an excellent meal for a large Kamoro family, when filled out with sago. With a sago base and usually fish protein, the Kamoro diet is quite varied, with many natural products gathered or hunted oportunistically.

Kal Muller 2004

Crocodiles

Crocodiles of two species are found in the Timika area: the freshwater and the estuarine/salt water. Since commercial hunting these animals was forbidden in the 1980s, the estuarine crocodiles have made a come-back, but there are still very few big ones. The inland, freshwater crocodile could represent a new species, different from the one found in the north of New Guinea.

Kal Muller 2004

Butterfly

Butterflies abound in Kamoro-land but have not been studied or catalogued well. These pretty insects can be highly informative in assessing the biological diverstiy of an area. The species include the most common of birdwings, Troides (Ornithoptera) priamus. The birdwings of New Guinea, all of the genus Troides, are eight in total, with six occurring or expected in the Freeport project area.

Kal Muller 2004

Kamoro Ecology: Papuan Gardener

Under outside encouragement, some Kamoro are slowly taking up agriculture. Hunting, fishing and gathering are their preferred ocupations. In Atuka, thanks to the efforts of a long-time resident Javanese schoolteacher, gardening has become relatively successful. Nutrient-deficient sand mounds are fertilized by an underlying layer of twigs and leaves of the Crotalaria striata, as well as the leaves of the beach hibiscus, Hibiscus tiliaceous.

Kal Muller 2004