Desmond Raggett Tjangala 278-24

Desmond is telling the story of the Tjupi or Honey Ants. The story of the Honey Ant is told across the Northern Territory and into South Australia. Not only a highly favoured food source, the Honey Ant is an important link between the Anangu people’s mythology and inter-dependence on the environment. The Honey Ant Ancestors are strongly associated with the country around Papunya. When Aboriginal people go looking for Honey Ants they look for ant tunnels that lead down to the ants’ nest, about a metre under Mulga trees. The Honey Ant tunnels that lead down to the ant's nests are called nyinantu and the larvae are called ipilyka-ipilyka. When they find them, they shovel and dig down, following the tunnels to find the Honey Ants inside. They suck the honey nectar from the abdomen of the Honey Ant.The circles in this dreaming often represent sites where the people are digging for honey ants, with the U shapes being people.