Geographic setting
Kuk Swamp (hereafter 'Kuk') is located approximately 12 km northeast of Mount Hagen, the provincial capital, in Western Highlands province, Papua New Guinea. The archaeological site is located on the former Kuk Tea (subsequently Agricultural) Research Station, covering c.
280 ha. Although tropical, Kuk is located in the highlands (i.e. more than 1,200 m above sea level) at an altitude of c. 1,560 m. The valley has a lower montane, a humid climate with an average annual temperature of 19 degrees C, and annual rainfall of c. 2,700 mm.[982] Rainfall is primarily orographic with a slight dry season between May and June, although soil water content is usually sufficient for year-round plant growth.Kuk forms part of the extensive wetlands carpeting the floor of the upper Wahgi valley. Based on altitude and without human intervention, the vegetation of the lower valley slopes would be lower montane forest with a mixed canopy of Castanopsis-Lithocarpus spp., while the upper valley slopes would comprise upper montane forest dominated by Nothofagus spp. Today, the valley floor is a horticultural landscape of cultivated plots, grasslands, settlements, and planted stands of she-oak (Casuarina oligodon).