Cumbebin Swamp is located adjacent to the township of Byron Bay and is connected to Belongil estuary. It is an important part of Country for the Arakwal people as a place of plenty supporting sustainable living.
Cumbebin wetlands are homelands where hunting and gathering occurred associated with separate men’s and women’s business. Men would go to the swamp to catch food such as birds, eels, turtles and snakes. Women would gather bush tucker and materials from the swamp including ferns for making baskets and paperbark to build their homes.
Cumbebin Swamp is now a Nature Reserve jointly managed by the Arakwal community and NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service under a co-management agreement.