Claims and Evidence in the Population History of Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

Lipo, Carl P.; DiNapoli, Robert J.; Hunt, Terry L.

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-91127-0_22

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…As such, we use these new estimates of rock gardening infrastructure to reevaluate previous population size models for Rapa Nui [e.g., (9)]. We demonstrate that the extent of rock gardening cultivation found in the occupied coastal areas comports with estimates of the population from observations made by early European visitors to the island in the 18th century, which is about 3000 (36).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Island-wide characterization of agricultural production challenges the demographic collapse hypothesis for Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

Davis,

DiNapoli,

Pakarati

et al. 2024

Sci. Adv.

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Communities in resource-poor areas face health, food production, sustainability, and overall survival challenges. Consequently, they are commonly featured in global debates surrounding societal collapse. Rapa Nui (Easter Island) is often used as an example of how overexploitation of limited resources resulted in a catastrophic population collapse. A vital component of this narrative is that the rapid rise and fall of pre-contact Rapanui population growth rates was driven by the construction and overexploitation of once extensive rock gardens. However, the extent of island-wide rock gardening, while key for understanding food systems and demography, must be better understood. Here, we use shortwave infrared (SWIR) satellite imagery and machine learning to generate an island-wide estimate of rock gardening and reevaluate previous population size models for Rapa Nui. We show that the extent of this agricultural infrastructure is substantially less than previously claimed and likely could not have supported the large population sizes that have been assumed.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 68%