Mitochondrial DNA from 3000-year old chickens at the Teouma site, Vanuatu Alice A. Storey a, * , Matthew Spriggs b , Stuart Bedford c , Stuart C. Hawkins c , Judith H. Robins d , Leon Huynen e, 1 , Elizabeth Matisoo-Smith f, 2 a Alice Storey Department of Anthropology and Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, University of Auckland Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand b School of Archaeology and Anthropology, College of Arts and Social Sciences. The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT0200, Australia c Archaeology and Natural History, College of Asia and the Pacific. The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT0200, Australia d Anthropology Department, University of Auckland and Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand e Institute of Molecular BioSciences and Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Massey University, Albany, Auckland 0632, New Zealand f Department of Anthropology and Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, University of Auckland Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand article info Article history: Received 8 March 2010 Received in revised form 9 May 2010 Accepted 10 May 2010 Keywords: Mitochondrial DNA Ancient DNA Chicken Pacific Lapita Vanuatu Archaeology abstract Chickens were part of the Lapita cultural complex, transported into and through the Pacific by prehistoric colonists; as such they can be used as a proxy for tracking prehistoric migration and interaction. The Lapita site of Teouma in Vanuatu is well known for the recovery of complete dentate stamped pots and a cemetery containing the largest collection of Lapita period skeletons ever found. Chicken bones recovered from these excavations provide the first ancient DNA sequences from any commensal organism directly associated with a Lapita context. The ancient mtDNA sequences obtained from two Teouma chicken bones are compared with previously published archaeologically derived ancient DNA sequences to extend our understanding of the spread of chickens in Pacific prehistory. The results also show that the haplogroup E signature was present in very early populations of chickens transported into Remote Oceania. This study also adds to the suite of available data relating to isotopic signatures for commensal animals during the early settlement of Vanuatu and may reveal a different diet for Teouma chickens than those from other early prehistoric assemblages in the Pacific. Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction 1.1. Commensal models and the chicken The term commensal derives from the Latin commensalis, com meaning together and mensalis meaning of the table e interpreted as sharing a table. Fundamentally a commensal model is based on using a phylogeographic approach to document the dispersal patterns of particular species closely associated with the movement of humans, across geographic space (Matisoo-Smith, 1996; Matisoo-Smith and Robins, 2004). All Oceanic domesticates may be considered commensals while not all commensals were domesticated. Consequently both terms may be used to refer to chickens in a Pacific context. Humans transported a variety of plants and animals across the Pacific in prehistory. The remains of Pacific rats (Rattus exulans), pigs (Sus scrofa), dogs (Canis familiaris) and chickens (Gallus gallus) offer unique datasets by which relationships among prehistoric groups of humans may be reconstructed. Using the same approach as has been applied to tracking human migrations (Cann, 2001; Cann et al., 1987), the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of domesti- cated and commensal species may be used to examine the rela- tionships among ancient populations. Using genetic patterns, historic relationships between populations of plants and animals can be reconstructed. In some cases a geographic signal can also be detected. These historical and geographic relationships can then be extended to understanding the routes by which organisms were transported in prehistory. The approach can be applied to any non- native organism which cannot disperse naturally but which co- occurs in Pacific island archaeological sites with evidence of human activity or settlement. Such organisms are assumed to have been introduced to island environments by humans. Commensal models, developed initially from studies of the Pacific rat (Matisoo-Smith et al., 1998a), have proven highly * Corresponding author. Present Address: Department of Archaeology and Palaeoanthropology, Universityof New England, Armidale, New South Wales 2351, Australia. Tel.: þ61 2 6773 3085; fax: þ61 2 6773 3030. E-mail addresses: astorey@une.edu.au (A.A. Storey), l.huynen@griffith.edu.au (L. Huynen). 1 Griffith School of the Environment Griffith University 170 Kessels Road, Nathan Queensland 4111 Australia. 2 Present Address: Department of Anatomy and Structural Biology, Otago School of Medical Sciences, University of Otago and Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, PO Box 913, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jas 0305-4403/$ e see front matter Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2010.05.006 Journal of Archaeological Science 37 (2010) 2459e2468