Resource Depression and Subsistence Change in Northland, New Zealand

新西兰北部地区的资源匮乏和生计变化

• 批准号: 0408963
• 负责人: Lisa Nagaoka
• 金额: $ 7.59万
• 依托单位: University of North Texas
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2004
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2004-07-01 至 2008-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0408963&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Resource; Depression; Subsistence; Change; Northland

With the support of the National Science Foundation, Dr. Lisa Nagaoka, will conduct an analysis of faunal remains from two archaeological sites on the North Island of New Zealand to examine the role of human-induced resource depletion on prehistoric subsistence. As with many other island situations, the arrival of people to New Zealand marked the beginning of dramatic changes to the abundance and distribution of native fauna. One of the best examples of the effects of human colonization is the decline and extinction of the moas in New Zealand. Moas were an order of large wingless birds endemic to New Zealand that became extinct after the arrival of Polynesian colonists between 1000 to 500 years ago. The abundance of moa remains in archaeological sites suggests that moas were an integral part of the diet for the prehistoric human foragers of New Zealand. Dr. Nagaoka's previous research on the South Island of New Zealand has shown that the hunting and gathering economy of the prehistoric inhabitants was dramatically affected by the depletion of moas and other fauna. The diet of the human foragers shifted from mainly seals and moas to a very generalized diet that included up to 70 taxa of fish, birds, and mammals. To harvest this wider range of resources, people also began exploiting areas that were less productive than those previously exploited. The research funded by this grant continues to examine prehistoric subsistence change resulting from resource depletion, but on the North Island where horticultural crops were an important part of the diet by European contact. Using foraging theory models hypotheses were generated that examine changes in 1) the number and kinds of resources exploited; 2) the number and kinds of habitats utilized; and 3) the pattern of butchery and transport of moa and seal carcasses. To test these expectations, two faunal assemblages from the Northland region of the North Island are analyzed. These assemblages were selected because they are from relatively well-stratified sites with large samples of faunal and artifactual material that date to the period just after Polynesian colonization. In addition, they are from the same region as the well-known and well-studied Houhora (Mt. Camel) site, which will provide an excellent complement and comparison to these assemblages.In addition to increasing archaeological knowledge of North Island subsistence change, this research is of interest to researchers studying in both prehistoric and modern examples of human-induced environmental change and its consequences for faunal populations and humans. In addition to the intellectual interest, this research will also have broader impacts on two different populations: Maori iwi (native tribes) and students. The results of this analysis will be available to the iwi through the New Zealand institutions that house the collections, and who are committed to bicultural representation in its public displays as well as in research. The results will be further disseminated to the public through the undergraduate courses taught to elementary and middle school children.

在美国国家科学基金会（National Science Foundation）的支持下，Lisa Nagaoka博士将对新西兰北岛两个考古遗址的动物遗骸进行分析，以研究人类导致的资源枯竭对史前生存的影响。与许多其他岛屿的情况一样，人们来到新西兰，标志着当地动物的数量和分布开始发生巨大变化。人类殖民影响的最好例子之一是新西兰恐鸟的减少和灭绝。恐鸟是新西兰特有的一种大型无翅鸟类，在1000至500年前波利尼西亚殖民者到来后灭绝。考古遗址中大量的恐鸟遗骸表明，恐鸟是新西兰史前人类觅食者饮食中不可或缺的一部分。长冈博士之前在新西兰南岛的研究表明，史前居民的狩猎和采集经济受到了moas和其他动物的枯竭的巨大影响。人类觅食者的饮食从主要是海豹和恐鸟转变为一个非常广泛的饮食，包括多达70种鱼类、鸟类和哺乳动物。为了获得更广泛的资源，人们也开始开发比以前开发的生产力低的地区。由这笔拨款资助的研究继续研究由资源枯竭引起的史前生存变化，但在北岛，园艺作物是欧洲人接触的重要饮食组成部分。利用觅食理论模型，提出了以下几个方面的假设：1)被开发资源的数量和种类；(2)利用生境的数量和种类；3)恐鸟和海豹尸体的屠宰和运输模式。为了验证这些期望，我们分析了来自北岛北部地区的两个动物群落。之所以选择这些组合，是因为它们来自相对分层较好的地点，那里有大量的动物和人工材料样本，可以追溯到波利尼西亚殖民之后的时期。此外，它们与著名的骆驼山遗址来自同一地区，这将为这些组合提供很好的补充和比较。除了增加北岛生存变化的考古知识外，这项研究还对研究史前和现代人类引起的环境变化及其对动物种群和人类的影响的研究人员感兴趣。除了智力上的兴趣，这项研究还将对两种不同的人群产生更广泛的影响：毛利iwi（土著部落）和学生。分析的结果将通过收藏藏品的新西兰机构提供给iwi，这些机构致力于在公共展示和研究中展示双文化。研究结果将通过面向中小学生的本科课程进一步向公众传播。