Multidisciplinary evidence for early banana (Musa cvs.) cultivation on Mabuyag Island, Torres Strait

Abstract

Multiproxy archaeobotanical analyses (starch granule, phytolith and microcharcoal) for an agricultural terrace at Wagedoegam on Mabuyag Island, Torres Strait, Australia document extensive, low-intensity forms of plant management from at least 2145-1930 cal BP, including the planting of bananas (Musa cvs); and, intensive forms of agriculture from 1376-1293 cal BP, evidenced from terrace construction, banana cultivation and dramatic transformations to the local palaeoenvironment. The robust evidence for the antiquity of horticulture in western Torres Strait provides an historical basis for understanding the diffusion of cultivation practices and cultivars, most likely from New Guinea, as well as a methodological template to investigate former plant management and, potentially, cultivation practices in northern Australia.