Natural selection and cultural rates of change

1. 

   View larger version:

   • In this window
   • In a new window

   • Download as PowerPoint Slide

   Fig. 1.

   Ten Polynesian island groups plus Fiji were studied. The Fijian archipelago is thought to have been the jumping-off point for the colonization of Polynesia (≈2,500–3,000 years ago) with New Zealand (Aotearoa) being the last major island to be settled. See SI Table 1 for a list of the archipelago names and associated major islands and alternate names for each island group.

   
   
2. 

   View larger version:

   • In this window
   • In a new window

   • Download as PowerPoint Slide

   Fig. 2.

   Functional traits for Polynesian canoes may affect whether a voyage for fishing, warfare, or colonization succeeds. (A) Detail of outrigger attachments on a Tahitian canoe. Shape of the boom and method of lashing varied greatly. They may have had important implications for the types of waves encountered, or may have been constrained by availability of materials, but this knowledge has not been preserved. (B) Samoan canoe “sewn” together with sennit (coconut fiber cord). This particular hull had a narrow keel and strengthening “ribs,” presumably to provide speed and stability in rough conditions. (C) Canoe from Manihiki showing pattern of sewn washstrake pieces (necessary when large tree trunks are not available for hull construction). Every island group studied had at least one type of canoe hull made from a single large tree trunk, but most groups also had designs with built-up parts, usually sewn with sennit but some attached with woodwork joining techniques. [Drawings by Darryl Wheye (Science Art). Modified from Haddon and Hornell (30).]

   
   
3. 

   View larger version:

   • In this window
   • In a new window

   • Download as PowerPoint Slide

   Fig. 3.

   Symbolic traits for Polynesian canoes presumably have no differential effect on survival from group to group. (A) Painted paddle from Rapanui (Easter Island) alongside face tattoo from the Marquesas. Similar symbolism probably indicates phylogenetic or cultural exchange relationships between the islands. (B) Canoe from Manihiki decorated with inlaid shell. (C) Carved figurehead on Maori war canoe (New Zealand). Marked differences in canoe profiles may have facilitated long-distance identification of parties during warfare. [Drawings by Darryl Wheye (Science Art). Modified from Haddon and Hornell (30).]