scholarly journals Late Holocene extinction of Puerto Rican native land mammals

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 193-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.T Turvey ◽  
J.R Oliver ◽  
Y.M Narganes Storde ◽  
P Rye

West Indian land mammals have suffered the most severe extinctions of any Holocene mammal faunas. However, ‘last-occurrence’ dates based on radiometric or robust stratigraphic data remain unavailable for most West Indian species, making it impossible to identify factors responsible for these extinctions. Here, we present new radiometric dates from archaeological and palaeontological sites on Puerto Rico, the only Greater Antillean island to have lost all native land mammals. Although it has been suggested that these species died out earlier than other West Indian mammals, we demonstrate that Puerto Rican mammal last-occurrence dates are in close agreement with those from other Antillean islands, as several species in fact persisted for millennia following Amerindian arrival. Echimyid rodents and nesophontid ‘island-shrews’ were still present on Puerto Rico approximately 1000 years BP, and probably became extinct following European arrival. The large (13 kg) heptaxodontid rodent Elasmodontomys obliquus also appears to have survived for over 2000 years after Amerindian colonization, suggesting that at least some large West Indian mammals became extinct in protracted pre-European ‘sitzkrieg’-style events rather than ‘blitzkrieg’-style overkill.

1965 ◽  
Vol 31 (2Part1) ◽  
pp. 246-249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo E. Alegría

AbstractHistorical sources corroborated by archaeological research demonstrate that the Antillean area was inhabited by people of three cultural traditions. Puerto Rico, because of its intermediate position between the Greater and Lesser Antilles, is of great importance in determining the chronology and the distribution of West Indian aboriginal cultures. Recent radiocarbon dates demonstrate that Puerto Rico was first populated by a preceramic people who arrived before the Christian era. A relationship between these Indians and certain preceramic groups of Venezuela has been postulated, although neither the chronology of the sites nor their distribution correspond. Other radiocarbon dates from Puerto Rico establish a clear relationship between the different pottery styles of the island and those of the Lesser Antilles and Venezuela.


Zootaxa ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 1994 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
AUBREY G. SCARBROUGH ◽  
DANIEL E. PEREZ-GELABERT

The species of Efferia from Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and the Lesser Antilles are reviewed. Twenty species are recognized including 12 new species from the Dominican Republic: E. alia sp. nov., E. angusta sp. nov., E. bullata sp. nov., E. clava sp. nov., E. exacta sp. nov., E. incisura sp. nov., E. picea sp. nov., E. serrula sp. nov., E. sinuosa sp. nov., E. suspiciosa sp. nov., E. spinula sp. nov., and E. woodleyi sp. nov., and 1 from Puerto Rico: E. montensis sp. nov. Seven previously described West Indian species are recognized: E. forbesi (Curran, 1931), E. fortis (Walker, 1855), E. fulvibarbis (Macquart, 1848), E. haitensis (Macquart, 1848), E. nigrimystacea (Macquart, 1847), E. portoricensis (Curran, 1919), and E. stylata (Fabricius, 1775). An unresolved species from Tobago and Trinidad is also reported. All of these belong to the aestuans species group. New synonyms include: E. pachychaetus (Bromley, 1928) = E. fulvibarbis (Macquart, 1848), syn. nov.; E. tortola (Curran, 1928) = E. stylata (Fabricius, 1775), syn. nov.; and Phoneus flavotibius Bigot, 1878, = E. fortis (Walker, 1855), syn. nov. Efferia haitensis (Macquart, 1848) is removed from synonymy with E. stylata (Fabricius, 1775). The male of E. stylata is discovered and described. Lectotypes are designated for E. haitensis and E. nigrimystacea. The species is removed from the list of species from Hispaniola. Endemism is high with most species limited to single islands. Only E. stylata and E. forbesi occurring in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and E. nigrimystacea in the Lesser Antilles are more widespread. Hispaniola has the greatest diversity with 15 species whereas Puerto Rico, the British and US Virgin Islands, and the Lesser Antilles have 5. Keys, illustrations of the left wing of selected males, and terminalia of all known species are included. A check-list of the West Indian species of Efferia, including an unresolved species from Tobago and Trinidad, is also provided.


2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Varela-Flores ◽  
◽  
H. Vázquez-Rivera ◽  
F. Menacker ◽  
Y. Ahmed ◽  
...  

1955 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-109
Author(s):  
John P. Broderick
Keyword(s):  

1996 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Cameron

ABSTRACTThe Functional Compensation Hypothesis (Hochberg 1986a, b) interprets frequent expression of pronominal subjects as compensation for frequent deletion of agreement marking on finite verbs in Puerto Rican Spanish (PRS). Specifically, this applies to 2sg.túwhere variably deleted word-final -smarks agreement. If the hypothesis is correct, finite verbs with agreement deleted in speech should co-occur more frequently with pronominal subjects than finite verbs with agreement intact. Likewise, social dialects which frequently delete agreement should show higher rates of pronominal expression than social dialects which less frequently delete agreement. These auxiliary hypotheses are tested across a socially stratified sample of 62 speakers from San Juan. Functional compensation does show stylistic and social patterning in the category of Specifictú, not in that of Non-specifictú. However, Non-specifictúis the key to frequency differences between -s-deleting PRS and -s-conserving Madrid; hence the Functional Compensation Hypothesis should be discarded. (Functionalism, compensation, null subject, analogy, Spanish, Puerto Rico)


Author(s):  
Elizabeth L. Andrade ◽  
Nicole D. Barrett ◽  
Mark C. Edberg ◽  
Matthew W. Seeger ◽  
Carlos Santos-Burgoa

Abstract Objective: This study aimed to examine factors that may have contributed to community disaster resilience following Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Methods: In April 2018, qualitative interviews (n = 22) were conducted with stakeholders in 7 Puerto Rican municipalities (9% of total). Transcripts were deductively and inductively coded and analyzed to identify salient topics and themes, then examined according to strategic themes from the Federal Emergency Management Association’s (FEMA) Whole Community Approach. Results: Municipal preparedness efforts were coordinated, community-based, leveraged community assets, and prioritized vulnerable populations. Strategies included (1) multi-sectoral coordination and strategic personnel allocation; (2) neighborhood leader designation as support contacts; (3) leveraging of community leader expertise and social networks to protect vulnerable residents; (4) Censuses of at-risk groups, health professionals, and first responders; and (5) outreach for risk communication and locally tailored protective measures. In the context of collapsed telecommunications, communities implemented post-disaster strategies to facilitate communication with the Puerto Rican Government, between local first responders, and to keep residents informed, including the use of: (1) police radios; (2) vehicles with loudspeakers; (3) direct interpersonal communication; and (4) solar-powered Internet radio stations. Conclusions: Adaptive capacities and actions of Puerto Rican communities exemplify the importance of local solutions in disasters. Expanded research is recommended to better understand contributors to disaster resilience.


1950 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 405-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. B. Fairchild ◽  
Harold Trapido
Keyword(s):  

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 61
Author(s):  
Rhianna C. Rogers

Puerto Rico has long been understood by archaeologists as a key geographical location for understanding the succession of cultural occupations in the Caribbean (Alegría, 1965; Curet, 2006; Siegel, 2005.) Unfortunately, despite the importance of archaeology in this region, the island has been continuously effected by socio-economic instability, lack of archaeological funding opportunities, few specialized academic programs, and a heavy focus on cultural resource management (CRM) rather than academic research. Though more Puerto Rican-focused archaeologists have joined the academic discussion, publications in this area are still relatively low and heavily focused on CRM and salvage work. Poor funding and resources for non-consulting archaeological projects has relegated Puerto Rico to the “island with the lowest number of publications in the Spanish Caribbean.” (L.A. Current, 2006 pg. 656). This paper will highlight some of the limitations of working in Puerto Rican archaeology. We will use the experiences we gained from our research project at the La Mina archaeological site to shed light on some of the difficulties we encountered as well as (hopefully) encourage an increase in academic and financial support for this understudied region of the Caribbean.


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