Why Natural Scientists Look Up: Birds, archaeology and living landscapes in Sāmoa
- Patricia Pillay
- Jun 29
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 29
Ducula pacifica Pacific Imperial Pigeon
The first thing I noticed wasn’t the archaeology.
It was a deep, rumbling call somewhere above us.
While the rest of the team continued setting up equipment, I found myself scanning the canopy until a pale shape moved between the leaves.
Most people imagine archaeology as a discipline focused on what lies beneath our feet. We map the ground, excavate layers of soil, and carefully record the material traces of past human life. But fieldwork has repeatedly taught me that understanding a landscape also means getting my head out of the dirt or a book and looking up and listening.
Fieldwork in Sāmoa
This field season our team, led by Associate Professor Ethan Cochrane in partnership with the National University of Sāmoa and the village of Saoluafata, has been documenting ancient agricultural systems, stone architecture and long-term landscape use.
Across three weeks, we spent our days mapping paepae (raised stone platforms that form the foundations of traditional Sāmoan fale), recording stone features, and excavating archaeological deposits that reflect centuries of human activity.
But the forest around us never feels separate from that work.
It is active, present, and constantly moving.
Meet some of the field team this year: Associate Prof. Ethan Cochrane, Afuvai, Vai, Jia-Lin and Jaiya.
The forest is another archive
Drone footage of Forest Canopy at Saoluafata Upolu. Taken by Jaiya Hunter MA
During travel between Apia and our field sites, I began noticing patterns that weren’t part of the excavation plan (while getting the main tasks done!).
In the mornings, flocks of Lupe crossed the coastal highway, moving from coastal trees inland towards forested slopes.
In Apia, Samoan Myzomela fed from flowering gardens and roadside vegetation.
Fruit doves appeared in urban areas where fruiting trees were available.
Before the sun settles for the evening, a Frigatebird glides across the Le Uaina shoreline in Faleapuna.
At dusk, an owl moved silently across a village landscape.
So how are these observations related to archaeology without the physical archaeological materials?
Well, they are part of the same system because these birds occupy these archaeological living landscapes. What I mean by this is that archaeological landscapes are not static. They are living environments shaped through long-term interactions between people, plants, animals and climate.
The forest is not just scenery around archaeological sites.
It is a living archive in its own right.
Photography by Mana Laumea. Falevao - View of Mauga Fau looking back towards north and old walls on eastern slopes of Falevao interior valley.
Heritage as a living landscape
In Sāmoa, heritage is not confined to monuments or artefacts.
It also exists in forests, birdlife, oral histories, place names, and ongoing relationships between communities and land- the natural history intertwined into cultural identity as is distinct in many cultures, including my own heritage from India.
Archaeology helps us understand the deep histories of these landscapes.
But those histories remain active because people continue to live with, move through, and care for them today.
Working together in the field
Fieldwork and research are never solitary pursuits.
I’ve been incredibly fortunate to learn alongside archaeologists, ecologists, and Sāmoan colleagues who have generously shared their knowledge with me.
This includes my friend and colleague Mana Laumea, whose expertise in Sāmoan archaeology and understanding of cultural landscapes, informed through both his research and lived connections to these places, has shaped the way I think about heritage.
It is also a great pleasure to work in Associate Professor Ethan Cochrane’s research team. Working alongside leading Pacific archaeologists, scientists, and students from both the University of Auckland and the National University of Sāmoa continues to demonstrate to me that the most meaningful research is collaborative, interdisciplinary, and grounded in partnership. All the values I aspire to in my own PhD journey.
A huge thank you to Vaiwilmalua Filia Maotua, Research Assistant and Postgraduate Student at the National University of Sāmoa, and to Taatia, Lecturer at NUS, along with his students Lusila, Magnoria, Brenilla, Victoria, Gese, and Tiare, for generously sharing their time, knowledge, and energy throughout fieldwork.
A special shout-out to Vai for her dedication and support in helping me find and observe birds in the field, and to the wonderful students for sharing their knowledge, curiosity and enthusiasm throughout our time together.
Check out NUS website resources for more and including work by Sāmoan anthropologist Dionne Fonoti and Gregory Jackson who work closely with NUS and Sāmoan communities.
Special mention! Check out this beautiful photograph by Lusila Pelenato, captured through her own talented eye in Savai'i! Absolutley incredible snap of some very precious and adorable chicks waiting for snacks from their dedicated parents.
Archaeology teaches us to read traces of the past, using empirical findings to connect landscapes across time.
Birds remind us that those landscapes are still alive and are part of a shared identity.
Somewhere between the two is where I find the questions that matter most.
That is what Faunal Girl is about.
Fa'afetai lava Sāmoa!, How incredible to learn and work in such an incredible land.
My sincere thanks to the village of Saoluafata, and to Pulenuʻu Sula and Leata and family, for generously hosting and welcoming us onto their lands during this research. Instrumental to this work are also the ‘aumaga of Saoluafata, including Afuvai, long-time colleague of Ethan, for his expertise and guidance during fieldwork. I am grateful for the generosity, time, and openness shared with us throughout our work in the village and continued engagement in my bird enthusiasm.
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