The only Australian Aboriginal culture which can be described as a true rainforest culture is located in the region roughly bounded by the Daintree to the north, Koah and Atherton to the west and Ingham to the south. The term Bama is generally used to describe the Indigenous people of the rainforest in North Queensland.

Their daily lifestyle and the things Bama people made reflect the special nature of the rainforest as a human habitat.

The regular and frequent use of poisonous plants as food sources is one of the distinctive cultural traits of the Bama culture. Toxic plants and nuts need a reliable and continuous supply of water to leach the toxins out. Detoxification of these food resources involves shaving or crushing the fruit/nut and soaking it in slowly flowing water for several days to leach out the toxins.
Unlike open grasslands, rainforests are not rich in game. Consequently, the Bama maximised the use of plant resource available to them.

Another trait distinctive of the Bama is the semi-permanent nature of their settlements. The Barna lived in well-constructed thatched huts, usually in a man-made clearing by a river or creek.