Six centuries of anthropogenic forest change on a Polynesian high island: Archaeological charcoal records from the Marquesas Islands

Huebert, Jennifer; Allen, Melinda S.

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2016.01.017

Cited by 31 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 44 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…These islands show a wide range of native vegetation diversity (Figure ), with tropical dry forests and shrublands on the leeward sides of the islands (known as terres désertes in French), tropical moist or wet vegetation communities on the windward sides, and wet montane or cloud forest communities above 800–1,000 m elevation. Many mid‐low elevation (<800 m) vegetation communities have been heavily transformed by agriculture, the introduction of invasive plant species, anthropogenic fire, and introduced livestock (Florence & Lorence, ; Hallé, ; Huebert & Allen, ; Meyer, ). For more detail on vegetation communities, see Hallé (), Florence and Lorence (), and Lorence, Wood, Perlman, and Meyer ().…”

Section: Biodiversity Of the Marquesas Islandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary biogeography of the terrestrial biota of the Marquesas Islands, one of the world's remotest archipelagos

Hembry

2018

Journal of Biogeography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aim Here I review phylogenetic studies concerning the biogeography of the Marquesas Islands, an oceanic hotspot archipelago in the Pacific Ocean formed <5.5 Ma, and compare patterns (particularly pertaining to colonization and diversification) within the archipelago to those reported from the Hawaiian and Society Islands. Location Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia (Pacific Ocean). Methods I reviewed 37 phylogenetic studies incorporating Marquesas‐endemic taxa. I asked the following questions: (a) where are the sister‐groups of Marquesas lineages distributed? (b) are Marquesas‐endemic “radiations” monophyletic or polyphyletic? (c) what major between‐island phylogeographic barriers are seen in the Marquesas? (d) what evidence exists for diversification within islands? (e) how old is the Marquesas biota compared to the archipelago's age? Finally, these patterns are compared with those seen in the Society Islands and Hawaii. Results Most Marquesan lineages have their closest known relatives on other Pacific plate archipelagos (particularly the Society, Hawaiian, and Austral islands). Most Marquesas‐endemic radiations are found to be monophyletic, and among‐island diversification appears to be common. There is limited evidence for within‐island diversification. Some radiations may be consistent with a weak progression rule in which younger lineages are on younger islands. Crown ages of no Marquesas radiations appear to be older than the age of the archipelago (with one exception). Main conclusions Diversification of the Marquesas biota resembles that of the Hawaiian Islands more than that of the Society Islands. Many radiations are monophyletic and some appear to diversify in parallel with the formation of the archipelago.

show abstract

Section: Biodiversity Of the Marquesas Islandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary biogeography of the terrestrial biota of the Marquesas Islands, one of the world's remotest archipelagos

Hembry

2018

Journal of Biogeography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Aside from the discovery of sites or artefacts representing a past material culture, one of the most effective direct measures for tracking past human activity has been found to be the presence, and abundance, of ancient (fossil) charcoal found in soils or sediments (following Whitlock & Larsen, ). The use of charcoal to track past human activity has been shown to be particularly effective in tropical settings where natural fire is limited due to either a lack of ignition source or flammability, that is, the appearance of fire is dependent on the arrival of humans (Argiriadis et al, ; Burney et al, ; Gosling et al, ; Huebert & Allen, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human occupation and ecosystem change on Upolu (Samoa) during the Holocene

Gosling

Sear

Hassall

et al. 2020

Journal of Biogeography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aim To track the peopling of the South Pacific and assess their impact on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Location Upolu, Samoa. Taxon Terrestrial and aquatic plants Methods A sedimentary record covering the last c. 10,500 years was recovered from the volcanic crater that contains Lake Lanoto'o near the centre of Upolu Island. Information on past ecological change was obtained from microscopic and macroscopic remains extracted from the sediments: charcoal (fire history), pollen/spores and plant remains (vegetation history), and lake status (algae/cyanobacteria). Information on the depositional environment and climate was obtained from geochemical and sedimentary analysis: loss‐on‐ignition (sediment composition), cryptotephras (volcanic eruptions) and precipitation regime (Ti/inc). The environmental history developed was compared with the archaeological record from the region. Results Charcoal material was found in the Lake Lanoto'o sediments at higher abundances and more frequently in samples from the period after the first archaeological evidence of people on Upolu (c. 2900–2700 years ago). No abrupt shift is recognized in the vegetation or aquatic ecosystem assemblages coincident with the arrival of people on the island. Main conclusions Macrocharcoal is demonstrated to be an effective proxy for detecting human occupation of Upolu around 2,800 years ago. The immediate impact of these settlers on the vegetation seems to have been minimal; however, a subsequent opening up of the landscape is suggested through the gradual increase in ferns. The absence of any significant change in the aquatic community associated with, or after, the arrival of people on the islands suggests that humans rarely visited the lake. We suggest that on Upolu a simple model of decreasing human impact away from coastal areas is applicable.

show abstract

“…For example, in New Caledonia, Dotte-Sarout (2017;Dotte-Sarout et al 2013) has demonstrated the presence of highly domesticated forests in the second millennium cal A.D.. In the Marquesas Islands, Huebert has documented activities such as rapid changes in forest composition due to human habitation (Huebert and Allen 2016) and fuel use in earth ovens (Huebert et al 2010). Murakami has long worked in anthracology throughout Remote Oceania, studying activities such as the development of agroforestry on Kosrae, Micronesia (Athens et al 1996), and the introduction of breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis) to Hawai'i in the 13 th century A.D. (McCoy et al 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Archaeobotanical Approaches in the Study of Food Production in Remote Oceania

Levin

2017

EBL

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This short topical review discusses recent archaeobotanical approaches to understanding food production in Remote Oceania (eastern Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia). The region presents some preservation and interpretative challenges, both due to the lack of cereal crops and the hot and humid climate that prevails through much of the area. Nevertheless, archaeobotanical analyses provide insight into topics such the transport of crops between islands and anthropogenic environmental change.

show abstract

Six centuries of anthropogenic forest change on a Polynesian high island: Archaeological charcoal records from the Marquesas Islands

Cited by 31 publications

References 44 publications

Evolutionary biogeography of the terrestrial biota of the Marquesas Islands, one of the world's remotest archipelagos

Evolutionary biogeography of the terrestrial biota of the Marquesas Islands, one of the world's remotest archipelagos

Human occupation and ecosystem change on Upolu (Samoa) during the Holocene

Archaeobotanical Approaches in the Study of Food Production in Remote Oceania

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About