Named for its original discoverer – Spanish explorer Luis Vaez de Torres in 1606 – the Torres Strait covers 150 kilometres from the northern tip of Cape York to the southern coast of Papua New Guinea. The 138 islands which dot this somewhat shallow stretch of water (no more than 10 metres deep in some areas) are diverse. The outer islands, nearest to PNG, are mudflats, swampy and dense. The centre group are coral cays, lush with tropical vegetation. The inner islands, which are closest to the Australian mainland, are volcanic, craggy and rocky, with coastal mangroves and swamps, much like the tip of Cape York itself. Only 17 of the Torres Strait islands are inhabited. The origins of the first colonisers remain unknown, but today's islanders physically resemble the Papuans of PNG rather than the Aborigines of Cape York. The overall population is a multicultural mix of islander, Aboriginal, Malay, Chinese, Japanese, Melanesian and Anglo. Creole, a form of pidgin English, is the common language, with each island fiercely proud of its own traditions. Local customs and cultures are powerfully bound to the environment and wildlife. Pigs are of prime importance, both culturally and as a food source. The sea and weather cycles influence traditional ways of life, with island populations meeting and mingling to trade in animal and vegetable products. The changes in borders, the establishment of the TSI Treaty in 1975, meant that islanders had to alter the way they interacted with Papua New Guinea. Movement of animals, fruit and vegetables became severely restricted. This has forced hundreds of years of trade to alter. Relationships to pigs changed. Traditional ways of life like the exchanging of gifts, trading of animal and vegetable products and the movement of people have had to change. The issue of quarantine has directly impacted a traditional way of life. Find out more about: The role of AQIS/NAQs Diseases of concern to AQIS/NAQS (related to film content)

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