Journal of Archaeological Science

Abstract

A long standing research approach in island Oceania is the examination of community and regional level patterning archaeological remains. However, These efforts are impeded by heavy vegetation and rugged terrain, which limit the implementation and productivity of traditional archaeological methods. Aerial lidar data provide an opportunity to survey large archaeological landscapes effectively and efficiently in this environments. In this paper, we present the results of a lidar-based survey and analysis of community-level spatial patterning for at sites in the Manu'a Group of American Samoa. Using lidar data in conjunction with pedestrian survey result, we first established the suitability ...........................................