Gu-ru-gnaty: aquatic monster

The ethnographer Matthews describes Gu-ru-gnaty living in a lagoon near Sackville ‘Gu-ru-gnaty is the name of an aquatic monster. He resides in deep waterholes, and would drown and eat strange blacks, but would not harm his own people. He usually climbed a tree near the water, from which he kept a look out. If he saw a stranger approaching, he slid down and dived into the water, without making a splash, or leaving any ripple on the surface. As soon as the individual began to drink, he was caught by Gurrugnaty.

  • Lyndal Marshall performs the Quoll cat chasing Garangatch the Eel, 1988