The Changing Role of Irrigated Colocasia esculenta (Taro) on Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands: From an Essential Element of Colonization to an Important Risk-Reduction Strategy

Abstract

This paper proposes that, on the Marquesan island of Nuku Hiva, wet cultivation of Colocasia taro was important in initial colonization because it was the most energy efficient and fastest-producing crop. In later periods its caloric contribution was eclipsed by breadfruit, but irrigated taro played an important risk-reduction role. KEYWORDS: Agriculture, archaeology, intensification, risk-reduction, irrigation, Polynesia.