Efate Research Articles

Fishing at Arapus-Mangaasi, Efate, Vanuatu (2800–2200 BP): New methodological approaches and results

The Arapus-Mangaasi site, located on the north-west coast of the island of Efate, Vanuatu, and first settled around 2800 BP, was excavated between 1999 and 2003 within the framework of a joint Australian National University-Vanuatu National Museum research and training program. The site yielded not only a range of cultural material that allowed the re-interpretation of the Central Vanuatu ceramic sequence but also well-preserved faunal remains, including a substantial number of fish bones. The present study focuses on the analysis of the ichthyofauna recovered in the area of Arapus and on the assessment of the most efficient identification protocol with a view to obtain precise faunal data leading to the characterisation of the fishing economy. Out of a total of 8080 fish remains, 2387 were taxonomically identified. The general assemblage is composed of 23 families of marine fishes, belonging to the Teleostei and Elasmobranchii groups, and dominated by surgeonfishes (Acanthuridae), parrotfishes (Scaridae), and groupers (Serranidae). The study of vertebrae allowed the identification of most acanthurids and hence proved to be essential in obtaining a detailed inventory of the fish spectrum. The assemblage composition highlights the presence of a large variety of inshore and reef-associated taxa, likely to have been caught by means of polyvalent and broad-spectrum fishing gear, possibly mass capturing devices, such as nets or traps, combined with angling and/or spearing. The results also suggest an opportunistic exploitation of ichthyofaunal resources during the Arapus period (2800 BP) and a probable decrease in the consumption of fish from the beginning of the Erueti period (2800–2200 BP) onwards.

Selling "Sites of Desire": Paradise in Reality Television, Tourism, and Real Estate Promotion in Vanuatu

In a continuum from early voyages of "discovery," Pacific landscapes continue to be created through the visual representations and geographical imaginings that inform foreign desires. Just as early exploration narratives and paintings fashioned the Pacific as an exotic Eden peopled with alluring women, contemporary media manufactures Pacific landscapes as sites of desire. Beginning with the filming of the Survivor reality television series, this article explores how the visual representations and narrative tropes attached to Efate Island in Vanuatu were instrumental in the commodification of customary land as real estate, subsequently sold to expatriates for tourism resorts and residential housing. Television, tourism, and real estate images are not benign. In these images the landscape is rendered terra nullius—absent of local inhabitants and ripe for possession—enabling the neocolonial possession of Pacific landscapes by foreigners and the dispossession of local Indigenous inhabitants.

The anthropogenic transformation of an island landscape: Evidence for agricultural development revealed by LiDAR on the island of Efate, Central Vanuatu, South‐West Pacific

ABSTRACTTraditional agricultural systems have been a fundamental research focus of Pacific archaeologists for decades. In many island groups, it has been demonstrated that whole landscapes have been transformed to facilitate increased agricultural production. High‐resolution digital elevation models (DEM) derived from recent LiDAR survey data from Efate, Central Vanuatu, have now revealed that much of that island was completely modified by human activity prior to European contact. There are a range of substantial and more minor linear mound and circular features associated with agricultural development and innovation, of which researchers and contemporary populations are largely unaware. Detailed analysis of the features across one alluvial plain provides some quantification of the scale of landscape modification. These new data radically change perceptions of the Efate landscape and contribute to a range of debates including traditional Pacific Island food production, its surplus and sustainability, sociopolitical development, environmental change and depopulation.

Foraminifera reveal a shallow nearshore origin for overwash sediments deposited by Tropical Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu (South Pacific)

Tropical cyclone inundation is a major threat to the highly exposed islands of the South Pacific. This vulnerability was highlighted in March 2015 when Tropical Cyclone (TC) Pam made landfall on Vanuatu as a Category 5 storm, impacting coastlines with storm surges that produced high water marks up to 7m above mean sea level (MSL) and deposited overwash sediments up to 400m inland. We examined the foraminiferal assemblages contained within TC Pam sediments at two locations in Vanuatu: a mixed-carbonate embayment at Manuro on Efate Island and a volcaniclastic beach at Port Resolution Bay on Tanna Island. At Manuro, the TC Pam sediments were up to 10cm thick and composed of coarse to medium sand that contained abundant foraminifera (955 to 2015 individuals per 5cm3) and fragments of corals and mollusks. At Port Resolution Bay, TC Pam sediments were up to 44cm thick and composed of medium sand-sized volcaniclastics with low to moderate abundances of foraminifera (27 to 206 individuals per 5cm3). TC Pam sediments could be discriminated from underlying units by a sharp basal contact, an abrupt decrease in organic matter, and an increase in the concentration of foraminifera. Foraminiferal assemblages between the two sites varied in terms of taxonomy and taphonomy. At both sites, the TC Pam assemblage was generally dominated by intertidal (e.g., Amphistegina spp., Baculogypsina sphaerulata, Calcarina mayori, Elphidium spp., Pararotalia spp.) and subtidal (e.g., Peneroplis pertusus, Quinqueloculina spp.) foraminifera that are characteristic of beach, reef flat, and reef crest environments. The TC Pam assemblage at Manuro was characterized by individuals that were dominantly unaltered (i.e., pristine), but also those that showed signs of abrasion (including edge rounded fragments). By contrast, TC Pam sediments at Port Resolution Bay contained fewer unaltered and more corraded (i.e., combined influence of corrosion and abrasion) foraminifera. We compared modern surface foraminiferal distributions with those from TC Pam sediments to assess provenance. Partitioning Around a Medoid (PAM) cluster analysis discriminated six subenvironments within the modern coastal zone: open bay, forereef, reef crest, reef flat, mangrove, and beach. Discrete intervals sampled from TC Pam sediments at Manuro were individually clustered with the surface samples and revealed a shallow nearshore to supratidal (reef crest to beach; −4.9 to 1.3m above MSL) source for the sand.

Hand-held echocardiography used by intensivist can improve the accuracy and efficiency of diagnosis during emergency consultation in general ward: a cohort study

Objective To investigate the accuracy and efficiency of hand-held echocardiography (VSCAN) used by intensivist for the diagnosis and treatment decisions in emergency consultation for patients getting worse at risk of life-threatening setting in non-ICU ward. Methods A prospective study in acutely deteriorated patients needed the intensivist for emergency consultation in general wards was carried out. The consultation process was executed as follows: (1) The intensivist established an initial diagnosis based on medical history, physical examination and laboratory findings, and assessed the hemodynamics and the cause of acute respiratory failure and cardiac arrest according the documented information. The data recorded as control group (Pre-VSCAN) for comparison with the later available data in subsequent analysis. (2) Problem-based ultrasound examination was performed with VSCAN. For patients suffered cardiac arrest, the FEEL protocol was used to find the potential cause of cardiac arrest such as pericardial tamponade and massive pulmonary embolism screened. For the other patients, a simplified eFATE or BLUE-plus protocols were used based on clinical requirement. With the findings of ultrasound examination the intensivist established an final diagnosis and identified the hemodynamics and the lung pathologies. The consultation advice was then provided to the attending doctors of the patient. The intensivist kept the records of echo results, final diagnosis and consultation advice as data of study group data (Post-VSCAN). The response of the treatment and outcome were followed up. Two attending ICU doctors analyzed these data and judged the correctness of Pre-VSCAN and Post-VSCAN based on the response to treatment and the outcome. Results Ninety patients were finally included in statistical analysis. Sixteen (17.8%) cases, 40 (44.4%) cases, 29 (32.2%) cases and 5 (5.6%) were consulted for acute circulation dysfunction, acute respiratory failure, both reasons and cardiac arrest, respectively. Compared to pre-VSCAN, VSCAN verification can significantly improve the accuracy of the diagnosis(81.1% vs. 58.9%, P=0.001), assessment of hemodynamics (78.3% vs. 52.2%, P=0.009) and can find more accurate judgment of acute respiratory failure (71.0% vs. 43.5%, P=0.001). Conclusion The hand-held echocardiography used by intensivist is valuable for the diagnosis and the assessment of cardiopulmonary status in case of request for emergency consultation in general wards. Key words: Pocket mobile echocardiography; VSCAN; Consultation; Emergency; Critical care

“By all means let us complete the exercise”: the 50‐year search for Lapita on Aneityum, southern Vanuatu and implications for other “gaps” in the Lapita distribution

ABSTRACTArchaeological research on the island of Aneityum, the southernmost inhabited island of the Vanuatu archipelago (the former New Hebrides), began in 1963 under the direction of Richard and Mary Shutler. It was soon after this that William Dickinson began analysing pottery sherds from various sites across the archipelago. He ultimately went on to study hundreds of samples, including – most recently – 112 from the site of Teouma on Efate Island. Early pottery sites remained elusive in the southern islands for two decades after the Shutlers’ pioneering work and on Aneityum for nearly 50 years. Assessments of the island's geomorphology, a key aspect regularly emphasised by Dickinson, coupled with perseverance and some serendipitous test‐pitting finally led to the discovery of a Lapita site on Aneityum. Dickinson's petrographic expertise was once again called on some 50 years after research first started on the island, to contribute to initial identification of the site's significance. We examine the difficulty of finding Lapita on Aneityum through a historical lens in order to reflect back on other presumed Lapita “gaps” that remain today, such as in much of the main Solomons’ chain and – with one current exception – in Samoa. Perhaps the gaps in other regions are not as extensive as is often argued.

Early Lapita skeletons from Vanuatu show Polynesian craniofacial shape: Implications for Remote Oceanic settlement and Lapita origins

With a cultural and linguistic origin in Island Southeast Asia the Lapita expansion is thought to have led ultimately to the Polynesian settlement of the east Polynesian region after a time of mixing/integration in north Melanesia and a nearly 2,000-y pause in West Polynesia. One of the major achievements of recent Lapita research in Vanuatu has been the discovery of the oldest cemetery found so far in the Pacific at Teouma on the south coast of Efate Island, opening up new prospects for the biological definition of the early settlers of the archipelago and of Remote Oceania in general. Using craniometric evidence from the skeletons in conjunction with archaeological data, we discuss here four debated issues: the Lapita-Asian connection, the degree of admixture, the Lapita-Polynesian connection, and the question of secondary population movement into Remote Oceania.

The chronology of occupation at Teouma, Vanuatu: Use of a modified chronometric hygiene protocol and Bayesian modeling to evaluate midden remains

A number of radiocarbon dates, both published and unpublished have been obtained from archaeological deposits across the Teouma site on the island of Efate in Vanuatu. These are on a range of materials from the midden and associated cemetery including charcoal (13) and shell (7) as well as a number of less commonly dated 14C sample types including bone from 2 terrestrial giant tortoises (?Meiolania damelipi), 8 pigs (Sus scrofa) and 2 chickens (Gallus gallus). Thirty-six human bone collagen dates and 5 Conus sp. shell ring artifacts from the cemetery context have been discussed in detail elsewhere (Petchey et al., 2014). In this paper, we evaluate the radiocarbon data according to observed contextual associations and established understandings of 14C offsets, and collate all available information in a Bayesian framework to establish the age and duration of the settlement at Teouma. This analysis provides a maximum age range for the Lapita deposits of between 3000 and 2560cal BP and a most likely start date of 2920–2870cal BP and end date of 2870–2750cal BP (68.2% prob.). This is slightly younger age for the deposits than previously reported, but is in keeping with evaluation of the burials themselves, the majority of which are dated to between 2940 and 2720cal BP. This age range indicates that the site was in use at the same time as colonization events in Tonga (2850–2830cal BP) and Fiji (3020–2860cal BP), and supports the hypothesis that Vanuatu was at the center of a region-wide interaction sphere for several generations after initial settlement.

Obsidian distribution from a Lapita cemetery sheds light on its value to past societies

AbstractThe Teouma site on Efate Island in Vanuatu is unique in the Pacific, as it enables us to analyse an archaeological assemblage in relation to discrete activity areas of burial and settlement at the time of initial settlement of the archipelago. Geochemical sourcing of obsidian in combination with a basic technological analysis help us to understand whether differences exist between burial zones and settlement middens.The results show that the distribution of obsidian was not directly associated with individual burials and does not unambiguously correlate with specific activity areas, thus questioning the hypothesis that obsidian transportation was linked to the increase in individual status. It is argued that the evidence adds further weight to those models that interpret the function of obsidian as being associated with past social transactions or relationships, rather than having any enduring or intrinsic value as a wealth‐enhancing commodity.

High-resolution pollen record from Efate Island, central Vanuatu: Highlighting climatic and human influences on Late Holocene vegetation dynamics

Climate changes, sea-level variations, volcanism and human activity have influenced the environment of the southwest Pacific Islands during the Holocene. The high-resolution palynological analysis presented here concerns two specific levels (main lithological changes) of a well-dated Holocene core, Tfer06, collected from Emaotfer Swamp, Efate Island (Vanuatu). Our aim is to understand the role of climatic variability and human activities in shaping vegetation during these changes. Between 3790–3600cal yr BP, the development of vegetation marked by disturbance is a marker of an increase in sustained El Niño events, also observed in many Asian-West Pacific areas. Between 1500–900cal yr BP, the increase in introduced taxa and in microcharcoal particles is interpreted as human impact. In a forthcoming paper, the ongoing high-resolution palynological analysis of the whole core will be compared and integrated into regional palaeoecological data.

Avifauna from the Teouma Lapita Site, Efate Island, Vanuatu, including a New Genus and Species of Megapode

Abstract: The avifauna of the Teouma archaeological site on Efate in Vanuatu is described. It derives from the Lapita levels (3,000–2,800 ybp) and immediately overlying middens extending to ∼2,500 ybp. A total of 30 bird species is represented in the 1,714 identified specimens. Twelve species are new records for the island, which, added to previous records, indicates that minimally 39 land birds exclusive of passerines were in the original avifauna. Three-fourths of the 12 newly recorded species appear to have become extinct by the end of Lapita times, 2,800 ybp. The avifauna is dominated by eight species of columbids (47.5% Minimum Number Individuals [MNI]) including a large extinct tooth-billed pigeon, Didunculus placopedetes from Tonga, and a giant Ducula sp. cf. D. goliath from New Caledonia. Seabirds are rare despite the coastal location of the site. Fowl are important contributors to the Teouma avifauna, with the human-introduced Red Junglefowl Gallus gallus accounting for 15% MNI and present in all...

Radiocarbon dating of burials from the Teouma Lapita cemetery, Efate, Vanuatu

The discovery of a cemetery at Teouma on the island of Efate in Vanuatu dated to c. 3000 years ago increased the number of early Pacific human remains available for study by nearly an order of magnitude and provided for the first time the ability to study the population dynamics of these early colonizers. The cemetery also provided an opportunity to investigate the chronological development of such a unique site. Although identified short-lived plant materials are favoured for dating archaeological sites, the reality of research in the Pacific region is that such materials are often rare, difficult to identify to species because of an absence of suitable reference collections, and dates on other materials often have greater potential to refine and focus 14C chronologies that deal with specific research questions. At Teouma, dates on the burial remains themselves are the best means to answer questions about the age and duration of the burial ground. Human bone, however, is one of the most complicated materials to date reliably because of dietary 14C offsets and bone preservation. One commonly used methodology for calibrating dates on human bone from Pacific human skeletal remains, based on linear interpolation between δ13C endpoints and δ15N values, is complicated by the wide range of foods available (marine, reef, C4 and C3), and remains largely untested in Pacific contexts. Radiocarbon dating of the Teouma site, including 36 Lapita-age burials, 5 dates on Conus sp. ring artefacts, and dates from the associated midden deposit, has enabled further evaluation of 14C dietary offsets and the reliability of calibrated radiocarbon ages on human bone. Bayesian evaluation of the 14C dates suggests the burial ground was in regular use by c. 2940–2880 cal BP, with the last interments occurring c. 2770–2710 cal BP. A number of burials could indicate possible earlier use, perhaps as early as 3110–2930 cal BP as indicated by the calibrated age range of Burial 57. This cannot be independently substantiated using other radiocarbon dates or context at the present time. Overall, these results suggest the burial ground was in use over a possible 150–240 years during the formative phase of Lapita expansion into Remote Oceania.

Lapita Diet in Remote Oceania: New Stable Isotope Evidence from the 3000-Year-Old Teouma Site, Efate Island, Vanuatu

Remote Oceania was colonized ca. 3000 BP by populations associated with the Lapita Cultural Complex, marking a major event in the prehistoric settlement of the Pacific Islands. Although over 250 Lapita sites have been found throughout the Western Pacific, human remains associated with Lapita period sites are rare. The site of Teouma, on Efate Island, Vanuatu has yielded the largest burial assemblage (n = 68 inhumations) of Lapita period humans ever discovered, providing a unique opportunity for assessing human adaptation to the environment in a colonizing population. Stable isotope ratios (δ13C, δ15N, δ34S) of human bone collagen from forty-nine Teouma adults were analyzed against a comprehensive dietary baseline to assess the paleodiet of some of Vanuatu's earliest inhabitants. The isotopic dietary baseline included both modern plants and animals (n = 98) and prehistoric fauna from the site (n = 71). The human stable isotope data showed that dietary protein at Teouma included a mixture of reef fish and inshore organisms and a variety of higher trophic marine (e.g. marine turtle) and terrestrial animals (e.g. domestic animals and fruit bats). The domestic pigs and chickens at Teouma primarily ate food from a C3 terrestrial environment but their δ15N values indicated that they were eating foods from higher trophic levels than those of plants, such as insects or human fecal matter, suggesting that animal husbandry at the site may have included free range methods. The dietary interpretations for the humans suggest that broad-spectrum foraging and the consumption of domestic animals were the most important methods for procuring dietary protein at the site. Males displayed significantly higher δ15N values compared with females, possibly suggesting dietary differences associated with labor specialization or socio-cultural practices relating to food distribution.

Buried in the reef: Funerary containers at the Teouma Lapita Cemetery (Efate, Vanuatu)

Buried in the reef: Funerary containers at the Teouma Lapita Cemetery (Efate, Vanuatu)

Community-based management of near-shore fisheries in Vanuatu: What works?

Abstract In the Pacific, coastal communities have compensated for chronically low capacity of governments to manage fisheries by implementing local regulations in their marine tenure areas. In order to investigate the performance of community-based fisheries management (CBFM) in Vanuatu, trajectories and factors of change in CBFM systems since the 1990s were analysed. Focal group interviews were conducted in seven villages on Efate island in 2011 and supplemented by a review of supporting literature. Results reveal the increasing and excessive reliance of CBFM systems on external agencies that promoted overly complex management plans. Examination of trends in CBFM systems shows that community and national fishing rules that were highly acceptable by local societies were more likely to be enforced in the long run. In particular, the establishment of marine reserves was the most widespread and best enforced community rule for the purposes of conservation, ecotourism, and/or fisheries. Overall, the results challenge the current effectiveness of CBFM in achieving sustainability of reef fisheries in Vanuatu, and highlight the over-reliance on small marine reserves as a management tool. Community initiatives must be strengthened by new specific national regulations governing subsistence and commercial reef fisheries as part of a multi-scale co-management approach.

New Host and Distributional Records forCryptosporidiumsp. (Apicomplexa: Cryptosporidiidae) from Lizards (Sauria: Gekkonidae, Scincidae) from the Cook Islands and Vanuatu, South Pacific

Between 1991 and 1993, 295 lizards, comprising 21 species in 2 families (Gekkonidae, Scincidae) from the Cook Islands, Fiji, Palau, Takapoto, and Vanuatu in the South Pacific, were examined for Cryptosporidium oocysts. Only 6 lizards (2%) were found to be passing Cryptosporidium oocysts in their feces, including 2 of 30 (7%) Oceania geckos, Gehyra oceanica, from Rarotonga, Cook Islands, and 4 of 26 (15%) Pacific blue-tailed skinks, Emoia caeruleocauda, from Efate Island, Vanuatu. This represents the largest survey for Cryptosporidium in Pacific island lizards, and we document 2 new host and 2 new locality records for this parasite genus.

Ecological management in a cultural landscape

Ecological management in a cultural landscape

Provenance and Technology of Lithic Artifacts from the Teouma Lapita Site, Vanuatu

Fifty-six obsidian artifacts and 141 non-obsidian artifacts were excavated in three field seasons at Teouma, Efate Island, central Vanuatu. Using LA-ICP-MS the majority of the obsidian artifacts were provenienced to the obsidian subsource of Kutau/Bao on West New Britain in the Bismarck Archipelago, Papua New Guinea. This study is the first geochemical analysis of a significant assemblage of West New Britain obsidian south of the Solomon Islands. Moreover, this finding represents only the second sizable assemblage of West New Britain obsidian in Remote Oceania beyond the Reefs–Santa Cruz Lapita sites and further establishes Vanuatu as a key area in understanding the initial Lapita settlement of Remote Oceania. Six obsidian artifacts were sourced to the Banks Islands, northern Vanuatu, supporting the hypothesis that sources there were known and utilized from the initial colonization of the Vanuatu Archipelago. A single artifact from the West New Britain subsource of Mopir was found. This is the only Lapita-period Mopir obsidian artifact found so far outside the Bismarck Archipelago. The geochemical analysis was accompanied by a quantitative attribute analysis investigating the reduction technology of the flaked assemblage.

Is Efate (Vanuatu, SW Pacific) a result of subaerial or submarine eruption? An alternative model for the 1 Ma Efate Pumice Formation

AbstractThe Efate Pumice Formation (EPF) is a trachydacitic volcaniclastic succession widespread in the central part of Efate Island and also present on Hat and Lelepa islands to the north. The volcanic succession has been inferred to result from a major, entirely subaqueous explosive event north of Efate Island. The accumulated pumice-rich units were previously interpreted to be subaqueous pyroclastic density current deposits on the basis of their bedding, componentry and stratigraphic characteristics. Here we suggest an alternative eruptive scenario for this widespread succession. The major part of the EPF is distributed in central Efate, where pumiceous pyroclastic rock units several hundred meters thick are found within fault scarp cliffs elevated about 800 m above sea level. The basal 200 m of the pumiceous succession is composed of massive to weakly bedded pumiceous lapilli units, each 2-3 m thick. This succession is interbedded with wavy, undulatory and dune bedded pumiceous ash and fine lapilli units with characteristics of co-ignimbrite surges and ground surges. The presence of the surge beds implies that the intervening units comprise a subaerial ignimbrite-dominated succession. There are no sedimentary indicators in the basal units examined that are consistent with water-supported transportation and/or deposition. The subaerial ignimbrite sequence of the EPF is overlain by a shallow marine volcaniclastic Rentanbau Tuffs. The EPF is topped by reef limestone, which presumably preserved the underlying EPF from erosion. We here propose that the EPF was formed by a combination of initial subaerial ignimbrite-forming eruptions, followed by caldera subsidence. The upper volcaniclastic successions in our model represent intra-caldera pumiceous volcaniclastic deposits accumulated in a shallow marine environment in the resultant caldera. The present day elevated position of the succession is a result of a combination of possible caldera resurgence and ongoing arc-related uplift in the region.

Trichomonas vaginalis in Vanuatu

To assess the prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis in two island populations of Vanuatu using the Pap smear as the screening technique. Women were randomly selected from specific sites on the islands of Efate (urban setting) and Ambae (rural setting). Pap smears were collected, screened and reported. The first collection site was the Women's Health/Antenatal Care Clinic at Vila Central Hospital in Port Vila, the capital city located on the island of Efate, and the second collection site was a rural village on a sparsely populated inhabited northern island, Ambae. A total of 905 Ni-Vanuatu women participants: Efate (n = 562) 62%, and Ambae (n = 343) 38%. The mean age was 35.8 years: Efate 32.6 years, and Ambae 40.8 years. The presence or absence of T. vaginalis in these Pap smears was documented during the study's cervical screening process. The overall prevalence of T. vaginalis within the study participants was 25.3%. Almost half of the infected sample group were in the age group of 30-39 years (43.8%). The prevalence of T. vaginalis in Efate was 14.7%, compared with 43.4% in Ambae. The prevalence of T. vaginalis in Vanuatu women is significantly higher compared with developed countries. Women in rural settings are less likely to have access to sexually transmitted disease prevention and treatment programs, thus contributing to high infection rates compared with women in urban settings. Cultural and educational differences in the rural setting might also contribute to higher sexually transmitted disease rates among these women.