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Human ecology in the Solomon Islands: Biomedical observations among four tribal societies

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Abstract

Data are presented from the first four groups studied in a longrange investigation of human ecology in the Solomon Islands. The groups varied in habitat, way of life, genetic background, and exposure to Western influence. Coverage of residents in designated hamlets was 78% for Kwaio, Malaita Island; 91% for Nasioi, Bougainville Island; and over 95% for both Lau and Baegu of Malaita. In all, 1626 persons were studied: 256 Nasioi, 443 Kwaio, 442 Lau, and 485 Baegu. All four groups were demographically “young,” with a high ratio of persons under 15 to those over 45 years of age, but a significant proportion lived to old age. Nutrition was adequate, though low in protein and fat. They had very little color-blindness and virtually no myopia, astigmatism, glaucoma, or hypertensive and coronary heart disease. Malaria, trachoma, and intestinal parasitism reflected differences in habitat and ways of life, but tuberculosis did not. Despite a density as high as that recorded for any human population, the Lau, living on small artificial islets in a saltwater lagoon, enjoyed robust health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Peabody Museum, and Population Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

    Albert Damon

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  1. Albert Damon
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This research, part of the Human Adaptability section of the International Biological Program, was supported by Grant GM-13482 of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences and was conducted with the permission and kind assistance of the Administrations of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate and the Territory of Papua and New Guinea, Commonwealth of Australia. The author was an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association during data collection and a Guggenheim Fellow in 1969–1970.

Dr. Damon died July 19, 1973, after an extended illness.

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Damon, A. Human ecology in the Solomon Islands: Biomedical observations among four tribal societies. Hum Ecol 2, 191–215 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01531421

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