Rottnest_Island_and_Swan_River_.281696.29 List_of_Dutch_inventions_and_discoveries

a quokka family on rottnest island, western australia

the first europeans known land on rottnest island 13 dutch sailors including abraham leeman waeckende boey landed near bathurst point on 19 march 1658 while ship nearby. ship had sailed batavia in search of survivors of missing vergulde draeck later found wrecked 80 kilometres (50 mi) north near present-day ledge point. island given name rotte nest (meaning rat nest in 17th century dutch language) dutch captain willem de vlamingh spent 6 days exploring island 29 december 1696, mistaking quokkas giant rats. de vlamingh led fleet of 3 ships, de geelvink, de nijptang , weseltje , anchored on northern side of island, near basin.

willem de vlamingh s ships, black swans, @ entrance swan river, western australia, coloured engraving (1796), derived earlier drawing (now lost) de vlamingh expeditions of 1696–97.



an adult black swan , cygnet. 1500 years, black swan existed in european imagination metaphor not exist. dutch explorer willem de vlamingh made first european record of sighting black swan in 1697. sighting significant in europe, swans white had long been used standard example of well-known truth.

on 10 january 1697, de vlamingh ventured swan river. , crew believed have been first europeans so. named swan river (zwaanenrivier in dutch) after large numbers of black swans observed there.