Ref ID:	24005
Ref Type:	Book Section
Authors:	Visser, Edward P. Green, Michael K.
Title:	Prehistoric oceanic biological variation: Sigatoka, Lapita, and Polynesia
Date:	1999
Source:	Le Pacifique de 5000 à 2000 avant le présent
Place of Publication:	Paris
Publisher:	Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
Abstract:	Skeletal remains from nine temporally and spatially distinct locations across Near and Remote Oceania were investigated for patterns of biological variation. Of primary focus were two samples, one a collection of Lapita associated skeletons spanning the period 2100-2800 BP, and the other an assemblage of skeletons from Sigatoka, Fiji dating to 1820 BP. Variation across six biological characteristics was interpreted following a developmental and functional anatomical approach, with a particular emphasis on Houghton's heat balance model. Methods of analysis included a variety of univariate and multivariate statistical techniques. Our results showed a clinal pattern in body form and size across Near and Remote Oceania that conforms to the zoogeographical rules of Bergmann and Allen. Relationships between certain aspects of mandibular morphology and body form also fit well with the predictions of Houghton's model. Within West Polynesia, similarities between Sigatoka and a recent Tongan sample indicate the presence of a shared adaptation that has been maintained over the past 1500 years. In contrast, the distinctive body form of a recent Fijian sample suggests a diminution in the degree of biological interaction between Fiji and Tonga sometime after 1800 BP. Strong morphological similarities between the Sigatoka and Lapita samples again indicate a shared adaptation and supports the notion of Lapita voyagers being ancestral to the Sigatoka people.
Date Created:	11/1/2006
Editors:	Galipaud, Jean-Christophe Lilley, Ian
Page Start:	161
Page End:	188