Intentional cranial deformation in the preColumbian populations of ecuador

Using 151 crania, 8 Preceramic, 86 Formative, 29 Regional Developmental, 28 Integration Period and some isolated skulls from Ecuador I can clarify some origins and diffusion of American cranial deformation. To Imbelloni's classification of Tabular erecta, Tabular obliqua, and Annular I add a new type, Cuneiform, marked by flattening of the entire occiput (not just the upper, membraneous-derived bone) without evidence of counter pressure in front. The Cuneiform type starts in Guayas about 2000 B.C. (perhaps the earliest in America) with diffusion to coastal Peru in Chavin times. Tabular erecta, of coastal origin between Manabi province and the Guyas river basin, about 1,000 B.C. , also spreads to coastal Peru. Tabular obliqua appears in Esmeraldas province probably from Mexico 2000 years ago, and diffuses south into Chile. Annular type starts early in the Southern Andes and appears late in the highlands of Ecuador.     

Archaeological potato tuber remains from the casma valley of peru

A collection of 21 preserved tubers of the potato from 4 archaeological sites situated in the Casma Valley of Peru is illustrated and described. The collections from these sites date from the Preceramic Period (2000 B.C.) to the Initial Ceramic Period (1200 B.C.). Identification of the tuber remains was undertaken through a stud) of their starch grains. Comparative material used for this purpose included other archaeological collections of tuber remains from the sites of Chilca and Pachacamac, as well as the fresh and dried tubers of modern-day wild and cultivated potato species.     

Evidence of Botanical Diversity and Species Continuity from Chancay Sites in The Huaura Valley,Peru<Superscript>1</Superscript>

Evidence Of Botanical Diversity and Species Continuity from Chancay Sites in The Huaura Valley, Peru. This study reports on new botanical evidence from the north-central coast of Peru. The material dates to the Late Intermediate Period (approximately CE 1100–1435) and is from archaeological excavation at the sites of Rontoy, Quipico, and Chambara located in the Huaura Valley. All three sites belong to what has been defined as the Chancay culture. The diversity of species present is consistent with the plants utilized in the region beginning in the Preceramic Period. Data also show differential distribution of plant taxa by site that cannot be explained by ecological zone or site location.     

Of Maize and Men: A Critique of the Maritime Hypothesis of State Origins on the Coast of Peru

The adaptation of preindustrial band and tribal groups to environments subject to aperiodic downturns of long duration can often be understood by reference to limiting factors affecting the productivity of the subsistence system. This paper examines the two alternative hypotheses of the maritime and agricultural foundations of state society on the coast of Peru, and by reference to limiting factors affecting the Peru Coastal Current, argues that coastal maritime groups never advanced beyond an egalitarian tribal stage. Support for the acceptance of the alternative agricultural hypothesis of state origins is provided by an ecological analysis of relevant features of the marine and terrestrial biomes, ethnographic data on marine subsistence villages, and archaeological data for the Late Archaic and Formative periods . [Central Andes, state origins, coastal adaptations, ecological anthropology, limiting factors]     

Maize and the Origin of Highland Chavín Civilization: An Isotopic Perspective

Scholars frequently posit maize as the staple food of Chavín civilization and some even argue that this crop provided the critical stimulus for its development. Stable carbon isotope analysis permits an evaluation of these hypotheses because maize, the only C₄ cultigen consumed in pre-Hispanic Peru, leaves an unambiguous imprint on the bone chemistry of its consumers that allows the calculation of its relative importance in the diet. Analysis of osteological samples from Chavín de Huántar and Huaricoto indicates that although maize was eaten, C₃ foods like potatoes and quinoa constituted the bulk of the dietary intake during the development and climax of highland Chavín civilization (ca. 850-200 B.C.). The authors briefly explore possible reasons for the secondary importance of maize in the Initial Period/Early Horizon subsistence systems of this region, a pattern already established by the late Preceramic period (ca. 2000 B.C.).     

Paleoethnobotany of the Early Initial Period of Gramalote in Northern Peru

The Gramalote site is an early Initial Period (1500–1200 B.C.E.) fishing village located in the Moche valley in northern Peru. Previous research assessed the social dynamics and economic interactions within that fishing settlement. The well-preserved animal and plant record facilitates the archeological study of diet and subsistence strategies through time. The examinations of faunal remains of seabirds, sea mammals, and mollusk shells support the expected marine-oriented subsistence strategy. However, the site also contains a long record of botanical remains suggesting that people had access to plant resources. For this reason, a paleoethnobotanical study was conducted with the focus on reconstructing the pollen record of Gramalote. Previously identified botanical remains were also considered. The analysis of diverse botanical proxies helped to study the relationships between humans and plants in this region of northern Peru during the second millennium B.C.E. Grasses; reeds; food, woody, and wild plants were identified suggesting an environment that allowed small-scale agriculture and a trading network during the Initial Period of Gramalote.     

Regional Cooperation in the South China Sea: Analysis of Existing Practices and Prospects

This article identifies potential areas of cooperation in the South China Sea, particularly on ocean-related matters. Several regional mechanisms related to marine and coastal environments have been established and, to an extent, have achieved their goals. Nevertheless, some improvements to existing mechanisms are highly desirable. Recommended is a regional mechanism that involves all bordering parties; limits its geographic scope to the South China Sea; is initiated and operates without the assistance of global organizations; is embodied in a legally binding instrument; and broadens the scope of cooperation to include marine living resources, maritime safety, and maritime security.     

Occurrence and distribution of Vibrio cholerae in the coastal environment of Peru

The occurrence and distribution of Vibrio cholerae in sea water and plankton along the coast of Peru were studied from October 1997 to June 2000, and included the 1997-98 El Ni?o event. Samples were collected at four sites in coastal waters off Peru at monthly intervals. Of 178 samples collected and tested, V. cholerae O1 was cultured from 10 (5.6%) samples, and V. cholerae O1 was detected by direct fluorescent antibody assay in 26 out of 159 samples tested (16.4%). Based on the number of cholera cases reported in Peru from 1997 to 2000, a significant correlation was observed between cholera incidence and elevated sea surface temperature (SST) along the coast of Peru (P < 0.001). From the results of this study, coastal sea water and zooplankton are concluded to be a reservoir for V. cholerae in Peru. The climate-cholera relationship observed for the 1997-98 El Ni?o year suggests that an early warning system for cholera risk can be established for Peru and neighbouring Latin American countries.     

A Note on Maritime Delimitation in a Multizonal Context: The Case of the Mediterranean

This article points out some of the issues that may arise during the delimitation of maritime boundary in a sea area where coastal states have proclaimed various maritime zones. Issues considered include delimitation in the presence of overlapping or coincident zones, the role of existing boundaries, use of all-purpose maritime boundaries, and the delimitation of future zones. Special reference is made to the Mediterranean Sea where coastal states have advanced various claims consisting of zones sometimes different from the ones provided for in the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
Archaeological Explorations in Peru. Part IV. Cañete Valley. A. L. K roeber .
Archaeological Explorations in Peru. Part III. Textiles of the Early Nazca Period. L ila M. O'N eale .     

Aquatic plants of Peru: diversity, distribution and conservation

Currently 177 vascular plant species are known or presumed to be obligately associated with water in Peru. Their composition and diversity were surveyed in relationship to their distributions among the natural regions of Peru. Despite considerable aridity, the coastal plains of Peru have important aquatic ecosystems, including marshes in river deltas and mangroves in the far north, near the border with Ecuador; 70 species of aquatic plants are found in this coastal region. The Andean highlands include a great variety of wetlands, plus lakes and rivers; 62 species are found, including eight species of Isoetes, some of which are potentially threatened by extinction. The Amazon region of Peru includes both steep montane rivers in the headwaters and wide floodplains formed by meandering rivers in the lowlands; 102 species are found distributed among these ecosystems, although many additional species are semi-aquatic. Research and conservation strategies for Peru's aquatic plants need to take into account these important regional differences.     

The Moves of a Bajau Middlewoman: Understanding the Disparity between Trade Networks and Marine Conservation

At the interface of Indonesia and Malaysia, border-crossing maritime trade appears to elude attempts to conserve marine resources. In Berau district (East Kalimantan) attempts to protect coastal waters from illegal fishing and trade fail to correspond with mobile trade networks. In this article, I describe how a female Bajau trader acts out her (illegal) trade network in practice. The article draws on 18 months of ethnographic research, during which I joined the trader along her travels through the coastal zone of northeastern Kalimantan. Using a performative network approach, I explore the trader's network as a continuously generated effect of practice and movement. Following her trading practices, I show that the performance of her network requires the ceaseless movement of people and things, in travelling (mobility) as well as in the reshaping of relations (fluidity). The trader's network is enmeshed in historically grown relations of kinship, ethnicity, and patron–client associations across the sea. These socially and spatially mobile associations are at odds with conservationists’ preoccupation with a spatial fixation of people, places, and borders. By showing how relations of loyalty, debt, and affiliation systematically transgress these borders, I demonstrate the significance of a relational approach to marine conservation that takes into account the mobility and interdependency of maritime networks. Such an approach may help to redress the hegemony of place-based approaches in marine conservation.     

《生物多样性公约》海洋生物多样性议题的 谈判焦点、影响及我国对策

海洋和沿海生物多样性保护和可持续利用等问题是《生物多样性公约》谈判的重要领域。本文梳理了历次缔约方大会的谈判进程, 认为主要焦点议题包括: (1)应对人类活动和全球气候变化对海洋和沿海生物多样性的影响; (2)海洋和沿海生物多样性保护和可持续利用的工具; (3)海洋保护区及具有重要生态或生物学意义的海域。这些议题的讨论将影响包括全球海洋保护区建设在内的海洋生物多样性保护进程, 也将影响全球海洋生物多样性保护国际制度的建设, 以及沿海国家的社会经济。我国应加强履约谈判的技术支持, 加快涉海相关问题研究, 积极参与相关国际谈判, 并大力宣传我国经验。     

Seaweeds: an opportunity for wealth and sustainable livelihood for coastal communities

The European, Canadian, and Latin American seaweed industries rely on the sustainable harvesting of natural resources. As several countries wish to increase their activity, the harvest should be managed according to integrated and participatory governance regimes to ensure production within a long-term perspective. Development of regulations and directives enabling the sustainable exploitation of natural resources must therefore be brought to the national and international political agenda in order to ensure environmental, social, and economic values in the coastal areas around the world. In Europe, Portugal requires an appraisal of seaweed management plans while Norway and Canada have developed and implemented coastal management plans including well-established and sustainable exploitation of their natural seaweed resources. Whereas, in Latin America, different scenarios of seaweed exploitation can be observed; each country is however in need of long-term and ecosystem-based management plans to ensure that exploitation is sustainable. These plans are required particularly in Peru and Brazil, while Chile has succeeded in establishing a sustainable seaweed-harvesting plan for most of the economically important seaweeds. Furthermore, in both Europe and Latin America, seaweed aquaculture is at its infancy and development will have to overcome numerous challenges at different levels (i.e., technology, biology, policy). Thus, there is a need for regulations and establishment of “best practices” for seaweed harvesting, management, and cultivation. Trained human resources will also be required to provide information and education to the communities involved, to enable seaweed utilization to become a profitable business and provide better income opportunities to coastal communities.     

Maritime Security in the South China Sea: Coordinating Coastal and User State Priorities

Maritime security concerns in the South China Sea are increasing for several reasons: higher volumes of shipping traffic, protection of exclusive economic zone resources, piracy, terrorist threats, greater international scrutiny of ports and shipping, and the modernization of regional naval and coast guard forces. Coastal states and international user states have many overlapping interests in the South China Sea, for example, in promoting safe navigation through its busy sea-lanes. On other issues, in particular, antipiracy or anti-maritime terrorism measures, they have different views about the seriousness of the threats and the responses necessary to address them. This article examines the convergent and divergent maritime security interests of coastal states (China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore) and international user states (Australia, India, Japan, and the United States) in the South China Sea. It finds that multiple stakeholders pursuing diverse interests have yet to close the gap between goals and means of achieving maritime security.     

The Regime for Transboundary Hydrocarbon Deposits in the Maritime Delimitation Treaties and Other Related Agreements of Arctic Coastal States

This article assesses the treaty practice of the five Arctic Ocean coastal states and Iceland in dealing with the issue of transboundary hydrocarbon deposits as part of the conclusion of maritime delimitation and other related agreements. That practice suggests a number of different ways in which states deal with the issue of hydrocarbon deposits bisected by a maritime delimitation: (1) silence, (2) a standard unity of deposit clause, (3) more complex variations on the standard clause including framework agreements for the development of transboundary deposits, and (4) a delimitation line with some form of joint development zone. This article assesses the Arctic state practice within this typology seeking to supplement the existing literature which tends to focus on the North Sea and Southeast Asia.     

Local patterns of diversity in California northern coastal scrub

Within global biodiversity hotspots such as the California Floristic Province, local patterns of diversity must be better understood to prioritize conservation for the greatest number of species. This study investigates patterns of vascular plant diversity in relation to coast–inland environmental gradients in the shrublands of Central California known as northern coastal scrub. We sampled coastal shrublands of the San Francisco Bay Area at coastal and inland locations, modeled fine‐scale climatic variables, and developed an index for local exposure to maritime salts. We compared diversity, composition, and structure of the coastal and inland plots using indirect gradient analysis and estimated species accumulation using rarefaction curves. Coastal plots were significantly higher in alpha, beta, and gamma diversity than inland plots. Plant diversity (effective species number) in coastal plots was 2.1 times greater than inland plots, and beta diversity was 1.9 times greater. Estimated richness by rarefaction was 2.05 times greater in coastal sites than inland sites. Salt deposition and water availability were the abiotic process most strongly correlated with increased maritime plant diversity and compositional differences. Stands of northern coastal scrub on the immediate coast with higher maritime influence exhibit markedly higher plant diversity than most interior stands, paralleling previous work in other vegetation types in this region. These studies suggest that the California coastline deserves special consideration for botanical conservation. Fine‐scale climatic models of cloud frequency, water availability, and the salt deposition index presented here can be used to define priority areas for plant conservation in California and other coastal regions worldwide.     

Skeletal evidence for Inca warfare from the Cuzco region of Peru

This article addresses the bioarchaeological evidence for Inca warfare through an analysis of 454 adult skeletons from 11 sites in the Inca capital region of Cuzco, Peru. These 11 sites span almost 1000 years (AD 600-1532), which allows for a comparison of the evidence for warfare before the Inca came to power (Middle Horizon AD 600-1000), during the time of Inca ascendency in the Late Intermediate Period (AD 1000-1400), and after the Inca came to power and expanded throughout the Cuzco region and beyond (Inca Imperial Period, AD 1400-1532). The results indicate that 100 of 454 adults (22.0%) showed evidence of cranial trauma. Of these, 23 individuals had major cranial injuries suggestive of warfare, consisting of large, complete, and/or perimortem fractures. There was scant evidence for major injuries during the Middle Horizon (2.8%, 1/36) and Late Intermediate Period (2.5%, 5/199), suggesting that warfare was not prevalent in the Cuzco region before and during the Inca rise to power. Only in the Inca Imperial Period was there a significant rise in major injuries suggestive of warfare (7.8%, 17/219). Despite the significant increase in Inca times, the evidence for major cranial injuries was only sporadically distributed at Cuzco periphery sites and was entirely absent at Cuzco core sites. These findings suggest that while the Inca used warfare as a mechanism for expansion in the Cuzco region, it was only one part of a complex expansion strategy that included economic, political, and ideological means to gain and maintain control.     

Making the Case for Marine Spatial Planning in the Maltese Islands

Marine spatial planning (MSP) has been gaining in stature recently as an ecosystem-based tool for the management of marine space that promotes the sustainable and optimal use of resources with minimal stakeholder conflicts. Malta is the quintessential maritime nation, with a disproportionately large marine area compared to its terrestrial area. Nonetheless, its limited coastline, a considerable portion of which is inaccessible, poses inevitable conflicts between multiple marine activities and designations, including aquaculture, fishing, bunkering, coastal tourism, navigation, renewable energy installations, conservation of biological diversity and protected areas (on ecological criteria). This article makes the case to implement MSP-based policies and an applicable legal framework in the Maltese Islands.     

The usefulness of caries frequency,depth, and location in determining cariogenicity and past subsistence: A test on early and later agriculturalists from the Peruvian coast

Dental markers have been used to unravel particularities of paleodiet, subsistence, social structure, and health. This article aims to compare oral pathology among four pre‐Columbian groups with different degrees of agricultural and socio‐cultural development but comparable ecological conditions who lived on the coastal desert of Peru. Three of these groups are assigned to distinct phases of the Formative Period (2500–1 BC), a time critical for our understanding of the development of agriculture and social complexity. The fourth group corresponds to the Late Intermediate Period (1000–1470 AD), when agriculture had its apogee and society was highly stratified. In this study we test whether there is an increase (1) in the frequency of carious lesions and (2) in caries depth, and (3) if there is a shift from occlusal to extra‐occlusal caries locations with the development of agriculture. Therefore, we analyze the frequencies of carious lesions and antemortem tooth loss (AMTL), the caries distributions by age, sex, and type of tooth, as well as the tissues affected by, and the location of the carious lesions. Since there are no significant differences in the frequencies of carious lesions and AMTL between the groups, we reject hypothesis 1. In contrast, caries depth does increase, and caries location changes from occlusal to extra‐occlusal sites with agricultural development. However, we can only corroborate hypothesis 2 and 3 when taking into consideration dental wear. Thus, we recommend that caries depth and locations should be used with evaluations of dental wear to reconstruct subsistence in ancient populations. Am J Phys Anthropol 143:75–91, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.