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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware this website contains images, voices and names of people who have died.

Map showing prickly pear-infested areas, 1923–1932

Prickly pear was first brought to Australia by the colonists of the First Fleet in 1788. Settlers used these prickly pear species for hedges, in their gardens and as food during droughts. But, by the 1880s, prickly pear was infesting farmland so badly that farmers began abandoning their land.

Source

National Archives of Australia B5626, 306

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