Stable isotopic analysis of prehistoric human diet in the Mariana Islands, western Pacific

Abstract

Stable isotopic analyses of human and faunal bones provide a valuable means to differentiate marine and terrestrial food use in prehistoric tropical island environments (Keegan and DeNiro 1988; McGovern-Wilson and Quinn 1996; Ambrose et al. 1997). Because stable carbon (I´ 13 C ) and nitrogen (I´ 15 N) isotope values in bone collagen are quantitatively related to the isotopic composition of ingested foods (Schoeninger and Moore 1992; Pate 1994), isotopic analyses of archaeological human bone may provide quantitative information about past diet that enhances qualitative data derived from artefacts and floral and faunal remains.  As the majority of terrestrial plants and animals that were consumed in prehistoric Micronesia have stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values that are significantly different from marine foods (Ambrose et al. 1997), bone collagen  I´ 13 C and I´ 15 N analyses can be employed to address percentage of marine vs. terrestrial foods in the diets of these Pacific islanders.  Human bone samples from two prehistoric sites on the northern coast of Rota, Mariana Islands, the SNM Hotel site (Craib 1992) and Vista del Mar (Craib 1998) were analysed for stable carbon and nitrogen in order to address relative use of marine and terrestrial foods. Â