  Tasmania Sighted by Dutch (1642)Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to sight the island of Tasmania, naming it Anthoonij van Diemenslandt after the Governor of the Dutch East Indies. In 1803, Britain took possession of the island and established a penal colony there. The indigenous population numbered about 5,000 at the time of colonization but was subsequently decimated, leaving few survivors. In 2007, a task force was formed to eliminate what animal that was first brought to the island by European settlers? More... Discuss |
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