The Last People Alive Pitcairn and Henderson Islands Megan, Xavier and Elizabeth

Mangareva, Pitcairn and Henderson Islands Located in the South Pacific in Southeast Polynesia Three habitable islands of Southeast Polynesia are Mangareva, Pitcairn and Henderson Islands were settled around A.D. 800

Mangareva Island Largest population and most abundant resources of all the islands Extinct volcanic islands 15 miles in diameter and surrounded by a coral reef High points on the islands received enough rain to have streams and springs as well as forests

Mangareva Island Islanders used terraced farming techniques Grew potatoes, breadfruit, taro, bananas and yams Abundant fishing on Mangareva’s reefs, including black-lipped pearl oysters to make tools Lacked hard stone resources for tool making

Pitcairn Island 2.5 miles in diameter, 300 miles Southeast of Mangareva Bountiful stone resources Shortage of fresh water, land for farming and reefs for fishing

Henderson Island Largest but least habitable of the three islands Lacking in stone to make tools, fresh water, trees and soil Plenty of fish, shellfish, turtles and birds

Trade Between Islands Mangareva, Pitcairn and Henderson all traded with each other Islands exchanged resources, crops, animals, marriage partners and skilled craftspeople between themselves

Trade With Other Islands Mangareva acted as a hub between Pitcairn and Henderson and the larger islands of Polynesia Mangareva traded with Marquesas Islands, peaking at around A.D Trade had stopped by A.D. 1500

Collapse of the Pitcairn Islands Mangarevans deforested the hills on the interior of the island in order to plant gardens Canoes could not be built without trees Lack of canoes caused a decline in fishing and trade between islands Deforestation also caused soil erosion and extinction of other plants and animals

Collapse of Pitcairn Islands Henderson Islanders used giant clam shells to make tools Bird bones were used to make awls Limestone or coral of giant clam shells were used to make oven stones Limestone and shells were not effective as replacements for oven stones Islanders survived for several generations after trade stopped

Collapse of Pitcairn Islands Fighting broke out over the few available resources left on the islands Islanders resorted to cannibalism to survive Pitcairn and Henderson Islands could not survive without the resources coming in from Mangareva Island No one survived on Pitcairn and Henderson

Five-Point Analysis Hostile Neighbors Loss of Friendly Neighbors Climate Change Society’s Reaction to Problems Environmental Damage

Henderson Island Environmental Damage No more imported Mangareva oyster shell No more Pitcairn volcanic glass or fine-grained basalt –All of which used to be in Henderson’s archaeological layers No metal, stones or imports In replacement for stone, they used shells or limestones for ovenstones Loss of Friendly Neighbors No metal, stones or imports In replacement for stone, they used shells or limestones for ovenstones Society’s Reaction to Problems In replacement for stone, they used shells or limestones for ovenstones

Mangareva Island Environmental Damage Habitat damage Mass extinctions of plants and animals Islanders contributed to deforestation in order to plant their gardens Forest became a savannah of ferns Soil erosion Society’s Reaction to Problems Mass extinctions of plants and animals Islanders contributed to deforestation in order to plant their gardens Forest became a savannah of ferns Chronic hunger Cannibalism Islanders fighting over the island

Pitcairn Island Environmental Damage Massive deforestation Soil erosion 5/9ths of its species of land birds were extinct due to hunting and habitat destruction Loss of timber for canoes ended all trade Society’s Reaction to Problems Hunting Habitat destruction Forest being burned down for gardens Loss of Friendly Neighbors Loss of timber for canoes ended trade Loss of imported volcanic stone

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