Tasmania-An Overview courtesy of Ann Greenwood Islands, especially small ones, have a special something that makes them inviting and intriguing to continental dwellers. It's probably something to do with being surrounded by water, a buffer that protects islands from uncontrolled influence by global forces. Some are big enough for their own small towns and some are inhabited only by seals and seabirds.
Lighthouses warn seafarers of the treacherous rocks and reefs.
A potted history Tasmania is an ancient island, left behind at least 165 million years ago when Gondwana was breaking up and starting its long journey north to form the mighty continents of South America, Africa, India and Australia. Aboriginal people were living in Tasmania at least 35,000, and possibly 50,000, years ago. They were nomads who followed trails laid down by law and season. They gathered shellfish and plant foods, trapped fish and hunted wallabies, living undisturbed until European navigators started exploring the southern oceans. He was followed in the late 1700s by French and British explorers who charted parts of the coast and landed for supplies of wood and fresh water.