The Aborigines of the Dieyerie tribe, in the far north of South Australia, believed that all living creatures were created by Pirra, the moon. This task was carried out under the direction of the Mooramoora, the great Spirit who made all things. Pirra created man by first making two small black lizards. He then divided their feet into toes and fingers and, with a forefinger, formed the noses, eyes, ears and mouths. Pirra placed the creatures in standing position, which they could not retain, and so he cut off their tails and the lizards walked erect. They were then made male and female, to perpetuate the race.
But when these first men and women began to move about the land, guided only by the moon's light, they found it dark and bitterly cold because the sun had not yet been created. Hunting weapons had not been developed, and the small animals they caught for food had to be run down on foot. The biggest creature in that far-off dreamtime was the emu. It was many times larger than it is now, and the hunters knew that the flesh of the emu, could they but capture one, would provide food for the tribe for a long time. They made many attempts to capture the big bird, but it was so fast, and the world was so dark and cold, that they never succeeded. The emu always vanished into the darkness. So the hunters held a great gathering, performed many ceremonies, and pleaded with Mooramoora to make their world warmer and lighter so that they could capture the emu. And Mooramoora listened to their troubles and made the sun, thus creating day and night.