Published papers

論文一 はじめに : 環礁の考古学二 95 PUK-6 人骨の発掘三 クロチョウガイ製釣針の多様な形態四 釣針素材の特性五 海を渡ったクロチョウガイ六 環礁に渡った人々七 まとめ : クロチョウガイの魅力

本稿では、慶応義塾に所蔵されるニューアイルランド島のウリ像を出発点に、民族誌的情報を整理したうえで、西欧の収集者にかかわるコロニアル・ヒストリーや博物館の近代史研究を概観し、多様な立場にあった人々のあいだの絡み合いを析出する足掛かりとする。

The depositional processes that formed Laura Island,Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands,were reconstructed based on a facies analysis of island sediments and spine ratios, and radiocarbon ages of foraminifera. Sedimentary facies were analyzed from trenches and drill cores excavated on the island and its adjacent reef flat. Depositional ages were obtained using benthic foraminifera (Calcarina) whose spines had not been abraded. The facies were classified into two types: gravelly and sandy. The initial sediments of these sites consisted of gravelly facies in the lower horizon and sandy facies in the upper horizon. Their ages were approximately 2000 cal BP and coincident with the onset of a 1.1-m decline in regional relative sea level, which enabled deposition of the gravelly facies. Half of the sand fraction of the sediment was composed of larger benthic foraminifera. The spine ratio showed that their supply source on the reef flat was located oceanside of the island. The supply source appears to have been caused by the relative sea-level fall. This indicates that the studied island was formed by a relative reduction in wave energy and enhanced foraminiferal supply, both of which were triggered by the late Holocene relative sea-level fall.

Atoll islands are areas of low, flat land, and the sustainability of habitable land in such environments is sensitive to even slight changes in sea level. The projected rise in sea level during this century may lead to the submergence of atoll islands and the widespread loss of habitable land. However, the actual time sequence of past sea level change, island emergence events, and human settlement of newly emerged islands remain poorly constrained. The results of geomorphological and archaeological surveys, combined with calibrated radiocarbon age dates, at Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands, central Pacific, reveal that the emergence of the island, triggered by a fall in sea level, was quickly followed by human settlement. The elevation of the central body of the island exceeded high water level at 2000 years CalBP, and the complete formation of the island occurred within an interval of 100 years. The island was colonized by people shortly after emergence, at 2000 years CalBP, prior to the establishment of dense vegetation, and has been continuously settled since that time.

© 2018 The Chemical Society of Japan. Influence of acidification on carbonate sediments in Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands was studied by chemical and mineralogical methods coupled with synchrotron-based X-ray ¯-CT. We found that the lowering of soil pH near the surface layer caused decrease of Mg concentration and increase of porosity of foraminifera (Calcarina spp.) due to the selective dissolution of magnesian calcite in Calcarina spp.test.

© 2018 Elsevier Ltd The sediments of Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands, consist of bioclastic materials, including foraminifera and coral debris. The sedimentary depth profiles of elements showed that various elements including zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) were enriched in the upper layers of the islands of Majuro Atoll. Carbon-14 dating revealed that the sedimentation of the upper layer was completed before 1670 and 542 cal BP in Laura and Calalen, respectively. The enriched elements could be categorized by their origins: (a) terrestrial elements transported as dust (aluminum (Al) and rare earth elements (REEs)); (b) anthropogenic elements (Zn and Cu); and (c) elements supplied by seabirds (phosphorus (P)). From the results of the total amount of Al supplied to sediments for ca. 2000 years, Al in Majuro Atoll was suggested to be airborne origin. The enrichment factors of the elements normalized to Al concentration of continental crust showed that REEs were also transported as dust, while Zn and Cu were mainly of anthropogenic origin. The speciation analysis by X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) showed the presence of Zn–Cu alloys originated from industrial products. It was also revealed that Zn was enriched in the surface due to anthropogenic emission after urbanization on Majuro Atoll and fixed by carbonate and phosphate at the upper layer, which inhibits migration of Zn into the deeper layer and its release to the groundwater and costal water. Hence, the fixation of heavy metals at the surface prevents their exposure to aquatic organisms and residents via fresh groundwater in the island.

New coral microatoll data allow presenting an updated late Holocene sea-level curve for the Gilbert Islands of Kiribati. Examination of build-up elevation and spatial distribution of microatolls, along with radiocarbon age data from coral samples, suggest an approximately 1 m sea-level high stand, possibly lasting from similar to 3500 to 1900 cal yr BP. Our sea-level curve, which is similar to the one reported from the Marshall Islands, is a baseline to reconstruct the evolution of reef flats and reef islands. In addition, it provides important contextual data to infer human settlement on islands in the west-central Pacific.

The reef islands formed on coral atolls are generally small, low, and flat, with elevations of only a few meters. These islands are thus highly vulnerable to elevated sea levels caused by extreme events and global warming. Such vulnerability was recently evidenced at Fongafale Islet, the capital of Tuvalu, when it flooded during accelerated spring high tides possibly related to sea level rise caused by global warming. Many factors, not only environmental but also economic and social, determine the vulnerability of an island to sea level rise. In this study, we used data spanning 108 yrs to reconstruct changes in topography, land use/cover, population, and the distribution of buildings at Fongafale Islet. The results indicate that the vulnerability of Fongafale Islet relates to its original landform characteristics: the central part of the island was formerly dominated by swampland that flooded at high tides. Fongafale Islet experienced greater population in-migration and centralization beginning in the 1970s following the independence of Tuvalu and Kiribati. Migrants were also responding to declines in overseas mining operations and limited options for paid employment. As the population increased, construction took place in vulnerable swampland areas. Our results clearly demonstrate that examinations of global environmental issues should focus on characteristics specific to the region of interest. These characteristics should be specified using historical reconstruction to understand and address the vulnerability of an area to global environmental changes. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.