Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4391-3590

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Keywords

Rapa Nui, Rattus exulans, Polynesia, Deforestation, Paschalococos, Seed Predation

Subject Heading(s)

Archaeological research

Abstract

The role of introduced Polynesian rats (Rattus exulans) in the deforestation of Rapa Nui remains a contentious issue. Several critics, including Mieth and Bork (2010), argue that rats played a negligible role compared to human impacts. We address the role of rats through three lines of evidence: (1) a response to rats-are-neglible arguments, including problematic continental analogies and misunderstandings of seed predation impacts; (2) analysis of rat remains from Anakena excavations (1986-2005) showing that rats decreased by 93% over time, contradicting claims they served as a “fallback food” following resource depletion; and (3) ecological modeling demonstrating that introduced rats could reach populations of 11.2 million within 47 years, with 95% seed predation sufficient to prevent palm regeneration. Our integrated evidence supports rats as a keystone invasive species that, through synergistic interactions with human forest clearing, drove one of the most complete ecological transformations documented in human history. These findings challenge narratives of simple anthropogenic “ecocide” and highlight the critical role of invasive species in island environmental change.

Comments

This paper has been accepted by the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Additional Files
Graphical_abstract.png (1418 kB)
Graphical Abstract
rapanuirats.zip (39693 kB)
Code for simulation and figures

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

Download

Share

COinS