Tropical islands of the Anthropocene: Deep histories of anthropogenic terrestrial-marine entanglement in the Pacific and Caribbean.

Abstract

Islands are useful model systems for examining human-environmental interactions. While many anthropogenic effects visible in the archaeological and paleoecological records are terrestrial in nature (e.g., clearance of tropical forests for agriculture and settlement; introduction of nonnative flora and fauna), native peoples also relied heavily on marine environments for their subsistence and livelihood. Here we use two island case studies-Palau (Micronesia) and the Lesser Antilles (Caribbean)-and approach their long-term settlement history through a "ridge-to-reef" perspective to assess the role that human activity played in land- and seascape change over deep time. In particular, we examine the entanglement of terrestrial and marine ecosystems resulting from anthropogenic effects and cultural responses to socio-environmental feedback. We suggest that on the humanized tropical islands of the Anthropocene, mangroves, near shore and littoral areas, and coral reefs were major sites of terrestrial-marine interface chronicling and modulating anthropogenic effects.