If you go to the antipodes of this world – Australia and New Zealand – you will see marsupials hopping about the countryside. But this is also Captain Cook’s Pig Farm, so you’ll find pigs there, as well.
These antipode island countries were certainly a “congenial climate” for pigs. Captain Cook, other early European explorers and many Pacific whalers carried pigs on board their ships as a food source. And also, as had been done since before Columbus’ time, breeding pairs of these pigs were often left on newly charted islands that displayed suitable habitat. The pigs left behind flourished. And their descendants became a living larder for future expeditions.
Since their earliest associations with man, pigs have worked overtime following humans across cultures, climates and economies. Whenever humans moved pigs into a congenial climate or culture they have flourished.
— Daniel E. Schultz from the Porkopolis.org Manifesto
Those pigs also became a scourge of native flora & fauna. And a scourge as well for the indigenous inhabitants and future generations of European settlers. The released pigs and escapees from farms gave rise to huge populations of feral hogs. This resulted in Australia’s and New Zealand’s current sad and complex issues of habitat destruction and the difficulties of feral pig eradication.
It is not the intention here to discuss these unfortunate circumstances. This anthology looks at the poetic potential of pigs as viewed by Australians and New Zealanders. This is a poetic exploration of pigs in these two antipode island countries.
Over eighty-five Australian and New Zealand poets provide fanciful, epic or utilitarian opinions of this porcine potential. And the pigs here also eagerly lend themselves to those interested in further scrutiny of the antipodes of pig poetry.
I hope you will explore and enjoy this anthology, and all the poetry here…
Perhaps I’ll see you on the pig paths out there somewhere! Here is the anthology:
G’day, Pig. Choice, Bro!
The Pig Poetry of Australia & New Zealand.