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Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific: Evidence from Mollusk Resources

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Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific: Evidence from Mollusk Resources Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific: Evidence from Mollusk Resources Author: Frank R. Thomas Source: Journal of Ethnobiology, 39(2) : 240-261 Published By: Society of Ethnobiology URL: https://doi.org/10.2993/0278-0771-39.2.240 BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses. Your use of this PDF, the BioOne Complete website, and all posted and associated content indicates your acceptance of BioOne’s Terms of Use, available at www.bioone.org/terms-of-use. Usage of BioOne Complete content is strictly limited to personal, educational, and non-commercial use. Commercial inquiries or rights and permissions requests should be directed to the individual publisher as copyright holder. BioOne sees sustainable scholarly publishing as an inherently collaborative enterprise connecting authors, nonprofit publishers, academic institutions, research libraries, and research funders in the common goal of maximizing access to critical research. Downloaded From: https://bioone.org/journals/Journal-of-Ethnobiology on 23 Jun 2019 Terms of Use: https://bioone.org/terms-of-use Access provided by Museum national d'Histoire naturelle Journal of Ethnobiology 2019 39(2): 240–261 Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific: Evidence from Mollusk Resources Frank R. Thomas1 Abstract. Mollusk remains from archaeological and more recent historical contexts provide good proxies to assess environmental change, as well as human impact, both negatively and positively, as reflected, for example, by resource management practices. Rigorous testing of various hypotheses to explain change or relative stability in mollusk distribution in archaeological assemblages requires an understanding of ecological and biological (life history) characteristics of the represented species, as well as access to ethnographic and ethnoarchaeological data on the interaction between people and mollusks. A growing interest in contemporary indigenous resource management among Pacific Island communities has led some archaeologists to seek evidence for sustainable use of resources in the past, to complement the more widespread research conclusions that depict mollusk resource depression and/or shifts in species composition as consequences of negative human impact. Based on fieldwork in Kiribati, eastern Micronesia, and the application of Optimal Foraging Theory, this paper adds support to recent ethnographic, ethnoarchaeological, and archaeological case studies for the sustainable use of mollusks. Keywords: archaeology, Optimal Foraging Theory, mollusk ecological and biological characteristics, sustainability, Kiribati Introduction a fruitful topic, in light of suggestions that Food production in the western half rapid dispersal across the southwest Pacific, of the Pacific Island region emerged at the beginning about 3,400 years ago, could end of the Pleistocene, after more than have been driven, in part, by the impact of 30,000 years of human settlement. Agricul- early humans on nearshore and intertidal tural expansion and intensification would resources (Groube’s [1971] “strand looper eventually alter terrestrial environments model”) that could be efficiently harvested, on nearly every habitable island across such as flightless birds, colony-breeding the world’s biggest ocean (Kirch and Hunt birds, turtles, reef fish, and invertebrates, 1997). The impacts can sometimes be including mollusks (Kennett et al. 2006; traced to early stages of human settlement Szabó and Amesbury 2011). and, in some cases, to resource depression, Changes observed in shell midden extirpation, and extinction (Kirch 2009). distribution (and other marine resources) The influence of indigenous societies on have often been attributed to direct human marine resources on islands is less well impact (Anderson 1979; Masse 1989; documented (Anderson 2008; Morrison Shawcross 1975; Swadling 1986), although and Hunt 2007). Indeed, the influence of the influence of other processes, such indigenous peoples on non-island marine as sea-level rise, tectonic events, coastal resources is also understudied (Rick and erosion or sedimentation, and storms, are Erlandson 2008). In the Pacific Islands, the sometimes acknowledged (e.g., Aswani and study of indigenous and local knowledge Allen 2009; Giovas 2018; Lambrides and of marine resource management remains Weisler 2017; Morrison and Addison 2008; 1 University of the South Pacific, Oceania Centre for Arts, Culture and Pacific Studies, Suva, Fiji (frank.thomas@ usp.ac.fj) Downloaded From: https://bioone.org/journals/Journal-of-Ethnobiology on 23 Jun 2019 Terms of Use: https://bioone.org/terms-of-use Access provided by Museum national d'Histoire naturelle Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific 241 see Harris and Weisler 2018a for a recent implications of this study relate closely to review) and present interpretive challenges the broader ecological, anthropological, for coastal zones and islands (Fitzpatrick and archaeological literature on environ- 2007, 2012). In examining the sustain- mental stress, demography, and resource ability of mollusk extractive strategies, the conservation, which is summarized in absence of changes in the archaeological Supplement 1. record may be indicative of species resil- ience, low human population densities, Human Behavioral Ecology low impact technologies, efficient use of Behavioral ecology, as a component resources (e.g., through an understanding of evolutionary ecology, appears well of environmental cues and fluctuations), suited for the analysis of human behavior and the application of intentional and unin- because of its concern with decision theory tentional management practices (Johannes in ecological contexts (Bird and O’Con- and Yeeting 2001; Reeder-Myers et al. nell 2006; Mithen 1989, 1990; Smith and 2016; Thomas 2014, 2015). Winterhalder 1992; Winterhalder 2002). Because of their small size, limited and The goal of human behavioral ecology is fluctuating resources, and relative isola- to study the ultimate causes of behaviors by tion, low coral islands are often depicted analyzing their reproductive consequences as marginal habitats for human settlement. among living populations and determin- While some communities did not endure ing their adaptive significance in the past (Anderson et al. 2000; Di Piazza and (Cronk 1991; Leonard and Jones 2002). Pearthree 2001), a remarkable number of Optimal Foraging Theory (OFT) pro- low coral islands (and other small islands) vides a focus on subsistence strategies, continued to support human populations making it especially appealing for under- for centuries, indicating a long history of standing decision-making in ethnographic resilience to environmental variability (e.g., and archaeological contexts (Greenwood Lazrus 2015; Lilley 2008; McMillen et al. 1984; Kohn 1989). Models derived from 2014). OFT lead to predictions about how organ- Despite their abundance on most isms, including humans, should act under atolls, marine resources were on occasion specific circumstances, such as the selec- subjected to avoidance practices, which tion of food or prey types that maximize would have enabled stocks to recover (e.g., short-term harvest rates. An increased Akamichi 1986; Veitayaki et al. 2015). It availability of food is assumed to increase is against this background of anecdotal fertility and survivorship, and minimizing evidence for indigenous management the amount of time spent foraging enables or conservation (e.g., Zann 1985) that I foragers to pursue other fitness-enhancing sought to collect quantitative and quali- activities. Thus, natural selection would tative data from the low coral islands of favor individuals that forage more effi- Kiribati, eastern Micronesia, that could ciently. The optimal diet is usually deter- provide explanatory value for understand- mined by considering the amount of energy ing sustainable extractive strategies. The acquired relative to energy expended, research was guided by Optimal Foraging including the time required to search Theory (Stephens et al. 2007) and the test- for and handle each prey type (handling ing of predictions from three models (patch includes time spent pursuing, capturing, choice, patch sampling, and risk) applied harvesting, and processing a prey type). to mollusk gathering. The data add support A key assumption of OFT is that people to recent ethnographic, ethnoarchaeologi- make choices when hunting or harvesting cal, and archaeological case studies for the resources. In some instances, the conse- sustainable use of mollusks. Results and quences for reproductive fitness can be Journal of Ethnobiology 2019 39(2): 240–261 Downloaded From: https://bioone.org/journals/Journal-of-Ethnobiology on 23 Jun 2019 Terms of Use: https://bioone.org/terms-of-use Access provided by Museum national d'Histoire naturelle 242 Thomas ascertained by comparing informant state- foraging ability, access to specialized tech- ments with other lines of evidence. By nology). All these variables are constraints way of illustration, statements about the that determine the relative costs of obtain- locally toxic cowrie (Cypraea tigris), which ing a currency, such as calories or protein is consumed elsewhere in the Pacific but from different resources (Alvard and Kaplan consistently avoided in Kiribati, were 1991;
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