Da. Burney et al., A HOLOCENE RECORD OF CLIMATE-CHANGE, FIRE ECOLOGY AND HUMAN ACTIVITY FROM MONTANE FLAT TOP BOG, MAUI, Journal of paleolimnology, 13(3), 1995, pp. 209-217
A sediment core from a high-elevation bog on Maui in the Hawaiian Isla
nds contains evidence for drier conditions between 9.4-5.8 kyr BP, fol
lowed by a wetter interval between 5.8-2.2 kyr BP, and a variable late
Holocene. These precipitation changes may be a reflection of vertical
displacements of the upper boundary of the mid-Pacific Trade Wind Inv
ersion (TWI) cloud layer. Fires, probably volcanically ignited, occurr
ed in the forests prior to human arrival. Polynesian activity in this
high-elevation, remote site was apparently limited, with no pollen, ch
arcoal, or sedimentological evidence for local anthropogenic disturban
ce. After European contact, grass fires increased and introduced plant
species invaded the site. Values for Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in sediments
throughout the Holocene indicate low trace-metal deposition from atmos
pheric particulates at the site, even in the twentieth century.