Mollusc Harvesting in the Pre-European Contact Pacific Islands: Investigating Resilience and Sustainability

2019 ◽  
pp. 189-211
Author(s):  
Frank R. Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Islands ◽  
European Contact

scholarly journals Effects of anthropogenic wildfire in low-elevation Pacific island vegetation communities in French Polynesia

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erica A. Newman ◽  
Carlea A. Winkler ◽  
David H. Hembry
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Introduced Species ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Fire Ecology ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Paired Comparison ◽  
French Polynesia ◽  
Vegetation Communities ◽  
European Contact

AbstractAnthropogenic (or human-caused) wildfire is an increasingly important driver of ecological change on Pacific islands including southeastern Polynesia, but fire ecology studies are almost completely absent for this region. Where observations do exist, they mostly represent descriptions of fire effects on plant communities before the introduction of invasive species in the modern era. Understanding the effects of wildfire in southeastern Polynesian island vegetation communities can elucidate which species may become problematic invasives with continued wildfire activity. We investigate the effects of wildfire on vegetation in three low-elevation sites (45-379 m) on the island of Mo’orea in the Society Islands, French Polynesia, which are already heavily impacted by past human land use and invasive exotic plants, but retain some native flora. In six study areas (3 burned and 3 unburned comparisons), we placed 30 transects across sites and collected species and abundance information at 390 points. We analyzed each local community of plants in three categories: natives, those introduced by Polynesians before European contact (1767 C.E.), and those introduced since European contact. Burned areas had the same or lower mean species richness than paired comparison sites. Although wildfire did not affect the proportions of native and introduced species, it may increase the abundance of introduced species on some sites. Non-metric multidimensional scaling indicates that (not recently modified) comparison plant communities are more distinct from one another than are those on burned sites. We discuss conservation concerns for particular native plants absent from burned sites, as well as invasive species (including Lantana camara and Paraserianthes falcataria) that may be promoted by fire in the Pacific.

scholarly journals Effects of anthropogenic wildfire in low-elevation Pacific island vegetation communities in French Polynesia

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erica A. Newman ◽  
Carlea A. Winkler ◽  
David H. Hembry
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Introduced Species ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Fire Ecology ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Paired Comparison ◽  
French Polynesia ◽  
Vegetation Communities ◽  
European Contact

Anthropogenic (or human-caused) wildfire is an increasingly important driver of ecological change on Pacific islands including southeastern Polynesia, but fire ecology studies are almost completely absent for this region. Where observations do exist, they mostly represent descriptions of fire effects on plant communities before the introduction of invasive species in the modern era. Understanding the effects of wildfire in southeastern Polynesian island vegetation communities can elucidate which species may become problematic invasives with continued wildfire activity. We investigate the effects of wildfire on vegetation in three low-elevation sites (45–379 m) on the island of Mo’orea in the Society Islands, French Polynesia, which are already heavily impacted by past human land use and invasive exotic plants, but retain some native flora. In six study areas (three burned and three unburned comparisons), we placed 30 transects across sites and collected species and abundance information at 390 points. We analyzed each local community of plants in three categories: natives, those introduced by Polynesians before European contact (1767 C.E.), and those introduced since European contact. Burned areas had the same or lower mean species richness than paired comparison sites. Although wildfire did not affect the proportions of native and introduced species, it may increase the abundance of introduced species on some sites. Non-metric multidimensional scaling indicates that (not recently modified) comparison plant communities are more distinct from one another than are those on burned sites. We discuss conservation concerns for particular native plants absent from burned sites, as well as invasive species (includingLantana camaraandParaserianthes falcataria) that may be promoted by fire in the Pacific.

scholarly journals Fijian Sigidrigi and the Sonic Representation and Construction of Place

2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Cattermole
Keyword(s):  
Western Europe ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Musical Style ◽  
European Contact ◽  
Art Form ◽  
Children's Songs ◽  
Song Lyrics ◽  
Music Genre ◽  
Textual Content ◽  
Construction Of Place

This paper explores how the inhabitants of Taveuni, Fiji’s third largest island, use the music genre known as sigidrigi (from the English ‘sing drink’) to articulate and redefine their relationships to particular places. Sigidrigi songs are often performed by groups of men to entertain people during informal yaqona (or kava as it is known throughout Polynesia) drinking sessions. They feature three or four-part vocal harmony, and are accompanied by guitar and/or ukulele. The repertoire consists of covers and localised versions of overseas songs, as well as songs composed by Fijians in styles adopted and adapted primarily from Northern America and Western Europe (for example, rock, pop, country and blues). The repertoire also includes songs from other Pacific islands, the Caribbean (for example, reggae), Indo-Fijian songs, and i taukei (indigenous Fijians of Melanesian or Polynesian descent) children’s songs and meke (an art form consisting of music, dance and costuming whose origin pre-dates European contact). An examination of sigidrigi song lyrics (in terms of both language use and textual content), band names, and various elements of musical style (such as texture, timbre, meter etc.) reveals how Taveuni islanders have used this music genre to (re)construct communities at geographical scales ranging from the local to the supranational.

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