Islands present significant technological and ecological challenges for long-term human settlement, with archaeological investigations of islands globally able to shed light on the adaptive plasticity of cultural groups to changing climatic regimes. The Massim islands of eastern New Guinea significantly reduced in size throughout the Holocene (⩽11.7 kya), providing a unique opportunity to investigate the long-term adaptive capabilities of humans to changing island ecosystems. Here, we report a 2500-2300 year cultural sequence on Nimowa Island in the Louisiade Archipelago of the Massim region which began with the arrival of a late Lapita population during initial beachfront development. Sediment analyses indicate earlier settlement on the island would not have been possible as the coastline was unstable until near-modern sea levels were reached. The island was abandoned from 1290 to 530 cal. BP during a period of unusually dry conditions (‘Medieval Climate Anomaly’) and probable freshwater shortages. Re-settlement coincided with wetter climatic conditions (‘Little Ice Age’), associated with the establishment of large villages, the earliest expression of local pottery traditions and the onset of large-scale regional exchange networks. Import of non-local obsidian reflects two pulses of interaction followed by periods of increased isolation. With the absence of high-quality lithic resources, shell, coral and bone were used as a locally available alternative for tool production. Increased cyclone frequency from ~500 cal. BP greatly increased beach volume in the island and coastal New Guinea, which facilitated the movement of populations onto smaller islands. A late prehistoric shift in settlement patterns had a profound impact on regional social dynamics.

中文翻译：

---

巴布亚新几内亚东部马西姆地区 2500 年的文化序列反映了自拉皮塔定居以来对小岛屿和气候变化的适应性策略

岛屿对长期人类住区提出了重大的技术和生态挑战，对全球岛屿的考古调查能够揭示文化群体对不断变化的气候制度的适应性可塑性。在整个全新世 (⩽11.7 kya) 期间，新几内亚东部的马西姆群岛的面积显着缩小，这为研究人类对不断变化的岛屿生态系统的长期适应能力提供了独特的机会。在这里，我们报告了马西姆地区路易斯亚德群岛 Nimowa 岛上 2500-2300 年的文化序列，该序列始于早期海滨开发期间晚期 Lapita 人口的到来。沉积物分析表明，在达到近现代海平面之前，海岸线不稳定，因此不可能在岛上更早地定居。该岛从 1290 到 530 卡路里被遗弃。BP 在异常干燥的条件下（“中世纪气候异常”）和可能的淡水短缺。重新定居恰逢潮湿的气候条件（“小冰河时代”），这与大村庄的建立、当地陶器传统的最早表现以及大规模区域交流网络的出现有关。非本地黑曜石的进口反映了两个相互作用的脉冲，然后是增加的隔离期。由于缺乏高质量的石料资源，贝壳、珊瑚和骨头被用作当地可用的工具生产替代品。旋风频率从 ~500 cal 增加。BP 大大增加了该岛和新几内亚沿海的海滩容量，这促进了人口向较小岛屿的迁移。