Frank R Thomas
Biographic Data
| ID | 630004 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Frank R Thomas |
| GIVEN NAMES | Frank R |
| FAMILY NAME | Thomas |
| SIGNATURE | THOMAS F R |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of the South Pacific |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 27 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 142 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1981 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 7 |
Shell‐Dense Island Off Culasawani, Vanua Levu Island, Fiji
Investigations of a 3000 m 2 shell‐dense island surrounded by mangroves off the coast of Culasawani, a very lightly inhabited part of northern Vanua Levu Island in Fiji, suggest it is likely to be a ‘midden island’ rather than a (tsunami) wave deposit. Building an island that reaches 60 cm above mean high tide, the shell‐dense deposit (70%–90% shell) averages 20–40 cm thick and appears unstratified, characteristics that initially suggested that i…
David V. Burley. 2023. The birth of Polynesia
David V. Burley. 2023. The birth of Polynesia: an archaeological journey through the Kingdom of Tonga. Burnaby: Archaeology Press Simon Fraser University; 979-8-37847-48-2 hardback ₤39.49. - Volume 98 Issue 399
Late Holocene sediment accumulation on emergent reef platforms
Botanical remains of the last 1800 years from Tarawa, Republic of Kiribati, reveal ancient aroid ( Cyrtosperma merkusii and Colocasia esculenta ) pit cultivation and other cultigens
Recent advances in the study of the antiquity and development of ancient Pacific Island agriculture have been made at sites across much of the region by the application of a range of microfossil techniques, namely analysis of pollen, phytoliths, and starch. Unlike in Melanesia and Polynesia, the application of these techniques in Micronesia is limited. Here we report on microfossil analysis of Micronesian archaeological pit deposits from Tarawa a…
Lapita Archaeology in the Southwest Pacific
Archaeology and Cultural Heritage in Kiribati
Archaeology and Cultural Heritage in Kiribati
Atoll Archaeology in the Pacific
Atoll Archaeology in the Pacific
Last-Millennium Settlement on Yadua Island, Fiji
A 50-70 cm sea-level fall around a.d. 1300 may have led to a prolonged food crisis which caused conflict among coastal dwellers on high Pacific islands. The conflict may have necessitated abandoning difficult to defend coastal settlements and establishing ones in fortifiable locations inland. To test this idea, abandoned hillforts (koronivalu) on 20 km2 Yadua Island were studied. Yadua Island is 20 km off the western extremity of Vanua Levu Islan…
Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific
Mollusk remains from archaeological and more recent historical contexts provide good proxies to assess environmental change, as well as human impact, both negatively and positively, as reflected, for example, by resource management practices. Rigorous testing of various hypotheses to explain change or relative stability in mollusk distribution in archaeological assemblages requires an understanding of ecological and biological (life history) char…
A Koronivalu kei Bua
Sixteen hillforts constructed and occupied perhaps several centuries before contact in the early nineteenth century are described from Bua district in northern Fiji. These hillforts represent inland settlements in fortifiable locations on high volcanic islands, plausibly established in response to the outbreak of sustained conflict. The chronology and functions of these hillforts were investigated through mapping, excavation, and collection of or…
Value of traditional oral narratives in building climate-change resilience
Janif, S. Z., P. D. Nunn, P. Geraghty, W. Aalbersberg, F. R. Thomas, and M. Camailakeba. 2016. Value of traditional oral narratives in building climate-change resilience: insights from rural communities in Fiji. Ecology and Society 21(2):7.http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-08100-210207
Shellfish Gathering and Conservation on Low Coral Islands
Low coral island societies in the Pacific have always lived in a precarious environment. Consequently, some writers have stated that people living on atolls and table reefs must have devised effective conservation strategies. Predictions from three optimal foraging models in ethnographic contexts (patch choice, patch sampling, and risk) applied to shellfish gathering in Kiribati, Micronesia, do not support the assumption that human foragers are m…
Balancing conservation and development in the Asia‐Pacific region
The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies
The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies: Archaeological and Demographic Perspectives. Edited by Patrick V. Kirch and Jean-Louis Rallu. University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu. 2007. ISBN
The Behavioral Ecology of Shellfish Gathering in Western Kiribati, Micronesia. 2
The Lapita Occupation at Naitabale, Moturiki Island, Central Fiji
In 2003 the authors discovered and excavated a Lapita site at Naitabale close to the southern end of Moturiki Island (central Fiji). Today the site is 350 m inland from the coast, but in Lapita times it was located behind the active beach ridge. A large collection of potsherds (including 92 dentate-stamped or incised Lapita sherds), shell, and animal bones was recovered, together with a human burial. Sherd decorations show affinities with the Wes…
Times of Plenty, Times of Less
The Behavioral Ecology of Shellfish Gathering in Western Kiribati, Micronesia 1
Recent archaeological findings at Qaranilaca Cave, Vanuabalavu Island, Fiji
A large sea cave on the southeastern tip of Vanuabalavu Island, northeast Fiji was excavated and shown to have been used by humans from about 1100 cal BP with rapid accumulation of material. The cave may have been uninhabitable until sufficient sand had built up to make flooding by the sea a rare event, and a possible fall in sea‐level could have contributed. With rapid cooling and sea‐level fall after about 700 BP, more intensive use followed. T…
Shellfish gathering in Kiribati,Micronesia
Shellfish gathering has received comparatively little attention in the anthropological literature. Yet, the contribution of shellfish to the diet of indigenous societies can be significant. Reef and lagoon gleaning activities in Kiribati, Micronesia illustrate the importance of this class of invertebrates, particularly on urban South Tarawa. Proximate composition of 24 bivalves and gastropods add to our knowledge of the nutritional value of tropi…
Taming the Lagoon’
The atolls and low‐lying limestone islands of Kiribati (Micronesia) illustrate the challenges of economic development based on natural resources exploitation. For that reason, the widely scattered island nation has relied heavily on foreign aid and remittances sent by merchant seamen. However, it is becoming apparent that excessive reliance on external support can no longer be considered secure in the medium to longer term, notably with cutbacks …
Self-reliance in Kiribati
Aid and remittances have long defined the economies of Pacific Island 'micro states' as part of the MIRAB approach to development. However, these sources of support now face an uncertain future. While recognizing that atoll nations, such as Kiribati, are constrained in terms of their agricultural potential, particularly on urban South Tarawa, there is still room for improvement of both traditional and exotic crop production to help reverse the tr…
An evaluation of central-place foraging among mollusk gatherers in Western Kiribati, Micronesia
Contemporary observations of marine foraging in a variety of settings suggest that some mollusks tend to be over-represented in middens because of differential preservation relative to other mollusk species as well as other organisms. Ethnoarchaeologists have often relied on the 'typical' pattern of shell-midden disposal for interpreting variation in assemblage composition in the past. This stems from describing and explaining the material conseq…
An evaluation of central-place foraging among mollusk gatherers in Western Kiribati, Micronesia
Contemporary observations of marine foraging in a variety of settings suggest that some mollusks tend to be over-represented in middens because of differential preservation relative to other mollusk species as well as other organisms. Ethnoarchaeologists have often relied on the 'typical' pattern of shell-midden disposal for interpreting variation in assemblage composition in the past. This stems from describing and explaining the material conseq…
The Lapita Occupation at Naitabale, Moturiki Island, Central Fiji
In 2003 the authors discovered and excavated a Lapita site at Naitabale close to the southern end of Moturiki Island (central Fiji). Today the site is 350 m inland from the coast, but in Lapita times it was located behind the active beach ridge. A large collection of potsherds (including 92 dentate-stamped or incised Lapita sherds), shell, and animal bones was recovered, together with a human burial. Sherd decorations show affinities with the Wes…
Times of Plenty, Times of Less
The Behavioral Ecology of Shellfish Gathering in Western Kiribati, Micronesia 1
The Behavioral Ecology of Shellfish Gathering in Western Kiribati, Micronesia. 2
Self-reliance in Kiribati
Aid and remittances have long defined the economies of Pacific Island 'micro states' as part of the MIRAB approach to development. However, these sources of support now face an uncertain future. While recognizing that atoll nations, such as Kiribati, are constrained in terms of their agricultural potential, particularly on urban South Tarawa, there is still room for improvement of both traditional and exotic crop production to help reverse the tr…
Value of traditional oral narratives in building climate-change resilience
Janif, S. Z., P. D. Nunn, P. Geraghty, W. Aalbersberg, F. R. Thomas, and M. Camailakeba. 2016. Value of traditional oral narratives in building climate-change resilience: insights from rural communities in Fiji. Ecology and Society 21(2):7.http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-08100-210207
Shellfish Gathering and Conservation on Low Coral Islands
Low coral island societies in the Pacific have always lived in a precarious environment. Consequently, some writers have stated that people living on atolls and table reefs must have devised effective conservation strategies. Predictions from three optimal foraging models in ethnographic contexts (patch choice, patch sampling, and risk) applied to shellfish gathering in Kiribati, Micronesia, do not support the assumption that human foragers are m…
Recent archaeological findings at Qaranilaca Cave, Vanuabalavu Island, Fiji
A large sea cave on the southeastern tip of Vanuabalavu Island, northeast Fiji was excavated and shown to have been used by humans from about 1100 cal BP with rapid accumulation of material. The cave may have been uninhabitable until sufficient sand had built up to make flooding by the sea a rare event, and a possible fall in sea‐level could have contributed. With rapid cooling and sea‐level fall after about 700 BP, more intensive use followed. T…
The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies
The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies: Archaeological and Demographic Perspectives. Edited by Patrick V. Kirch and Jean-Louis Rallu. University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu. 2007. ISBN
Taming the Lagoon’
The atolls and low‐lying limestone islands of Kiribati (Micronesia) illustrate the challenges of economic development based on natural resources exploitation. For that reason, the widely scattered island nation has relied heavily on foreign aid and remittances sent by merchant seamen. However, it is becoming apparent that excessive reliance on external support can no longer be considered secure in the medium to longer term, notably with cutbacks …
Remodeling Marine Tenure on the Atolls
Photography and Literature
Remodeling Marine Tenure on the Atolls
Self-reliance in Kiribati
Aid and remittances have long defined the economies of Pacific Island 'micro states' as part of the MIRAB approach to development. However, these sources of support now face an uncertain future. While recognizing that atoll nations, such as Kiribati, are constrained in terms of their agricultural potential, particularly on urban South Tarawa, there is still room for improvement of both traditional and exotic crop production to help reverse the tr…
An evaluation of central-place foraging among mollusk gatherers in Western Kiribati, Micronesia
Contemporary observations of marine foraging in a variety of settings suggest that some mollusks tend to be over-represented in middens because of differential preservation relative to other mollusk species as well as other organisms. Ethnoarchaeologists have often relied on the 'typical' pattern of shell-midden disposal for interpreting variation in assemblage composition in the past. This stems from describing and explaining the material conseq…
Shellfish gathering in Kiribati,Micronesia
Shellfish gathering has received comparatively little attention in the anthropological literature. Yet, the contribution of shellfish to the diet of indigenous societies can be significant. Reef and lagoon gleaning activities in Kiribati, Micronesia illustrate the importance of this class of invertebrates, particularly on urban South Tarawa. Proximate composition of 24 bivalves and gastropods add to our knowledge of the nutritional value of tropi…
Taming the Lagoon’
The atolls and low‐lying limestone islands of Kiribati (Micronesia) illustrate the challenges of economic development based on natural resources exploitation. For that reason, the widely scattered island nation has relied heavily on foreign aid and remittances sent by merchant seamen. However, it is becoming apparent that excessive reliance on external support can no longer be considered secure in the medium to longer term, notably with cutbacks …
Recent archaeological findings at Qaranilaca Cave, Vanuabalavu Island, Fiji
A large sea cave on the southeastern tip of Vanuabalavu Island, northeast Fiji was excavated and shown to have been used by humans from about 1100 cal BP with rapid accumulation of material. The cave may have been uninhabitable until sufficient sand had built up to make flooding by the sea a rare event, and a possible fall in sea‐level could have contributed. With rapid cooling and sea‐level fall after about 700 BP, more intensive use followed. T…
The Behavioral Ecology of Shellfish Gathering in Western Kiribati, Micronesia. 2
The Lapita Occupation at Naitabale, Moturiki Island, Central Fiji
In 2003 the authors discovered and excavated a Lapita site at Naitabale close to the southern end of Moturiki Island (central Fiji). Today the site is 350 m inland from the coast, but in Lapita times it was located behind the active beach ridge. A large collection of potsherds (including 92 dentate-stamped or incised Lapita sherds), shell, and animal bones was recovered, together with a human burial. Sherd decorations show affinities with the Wes…
Times of Plenty, Times of Less
The Behavioral Ecology of Shellfish Gathering in Western Kiribati, Micronesia 1
The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies
The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies: Archaeological and Demographic Perspectives. Edited by Patrick V. Kirch and Jean-Louis Rallu. University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu. 2007. ISBN
Balancing conservation and development in the Asia‐Pacific region
Shellfish Gathering and Conservation on Low Coral Islands
Low coral island societies in the Pacific have always lived in a precarious environment. Consequently, some writers have stated that people living on atolls and table reefs must have devised effective conservation strategies. Predictions from three optimal foraging models in ethnographic contexts (patch choice, patch sampling, and risk) applied to shellfish gathering in Kiribati, Micronesia, do not support the assumption that human foragers are m…
Value of traditional oral narratives in building climate-change resilience
Janif, S. Z., P. D. Nunn, P. Geraghty, W. Aalbersberg, F. R. Thomas, and M. Camailakeba. 2016. Value of traditional oral narratives in building climate-change resilience: insights from rural communities in Fiji. Ecology and Society 21(2):7.http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-08100-210207
Atoll Archaeology in the Pacific
Atoll Archaeology in the Pacific
Last-Millennium Settlement on Yadua Island, Fiji
A 50-70 cm sea-level fall around a.d. 1300 may have led to a prolonged food crisis which caused conflict among coastal dwellers on high Pacific islands. The conflict may have necessitated abandoning difficult to defend coastal settlements and establishing ones in fortifiable locations inland. To test this idea, abandoned hillforts (koronivalu) on 20 km2 Yadua Island were studied. Yadua Island is 20 km off the western extremity of Vanua Levu Islan…
Sustainable Extractive Strategies in the Pre-European Contact Pacific
Mollusk remains from archaeological and more recent historical contexts provide good proxies to assess environmental change, as well as human impact, both negatively and positively, as reflected, for example, by resource management practices. Rigorous testing of various hypotheses to explain change or relative stability in mollusk distribution in archaeological assemblages requires an understanding of ecological and biological (life history) char…
A Koronivalu kei Bua
Sixteen hillforts constructed and occupied perhaps several centuries before contact in the early nineteenth century are described from Bua district in northern Fiji. These hillforts represent inland settlements in fortifiable locations on high volcanic islands, plausibly established in response to the outbreak of sustained conflict. The chronology and functions of these hillforts were investigated through mapping, excavation, and collection of or…
Lapita Archaeology in the Southwest Pacific
Archaeology and Cultural Heritage in Kiribati
Archaeology and Cultural Heritage in Kiribati
Late Holocene sediment accumulation on emergent reef platforms
Botanical remains of the last 1800 years from Tarawa, Republic of Kiribati, reveal ancient aroid ( Cyrtosperma merkusii and Colocasia esculenta ) pit cultivation and other cultigens
Recent advances in the study of the antiquity and development of ancient Pacific Island agriculture have been made at sites across much of the region by the application of a range of microfossil techniques, namely analysis of pollen, phytoliths, and starch. Unlike in Melanesia and Polynesia, the application of these techniques in Micronesia is limited. Here we report on microfossil analysis of Micronesian archaeological pit deposits from Tarawa a…
Pacific and Southeast Asian Studies (24 works) · Geography (23 works) · Archaeology (16 works) · Biology (10 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (9 works) · Ecology (8 works) · Geology (8 works) · History (8 works) · Island Studies and Pacific Affairs (8 works) · Reef (7 works)