Northern Macaronesia (49,293 – 28,578 BCE) Upper Pleistocene I — Oceanic Volcanoes in the Ice Age

Geographic and Environmental Context

Northern Macaronesia includes the Azores, Madeira, Porto Santo, and the Selvagens Islands.

• The Azores: nine volcanic islands in the mid-North Atlantic (São Miguel, Terceira, Pico, Faial, São Jorge, Graciosa, Flores, Corvo, Santa Maria).

• Madeira Archipelago: Madeira, Porto Santo, and the uninhabited Desertas.

• Selvagens: small rocky outcrops south of Madeira.

Anchors: Azores volcanic cones and crater lakes (Furnas, Sete Cidades), Madeira’s laurisilva-clad mountains, Porto Santo’s dunes, and Selvagens’ seabird colonies.

• Northern Macaronesia already formed by volcanic activity, with rugged islands, sheer cliffs, and crater lakes.

• Continental shelves absent; islands rose steeply from deep oceanic basins.

Climate & Environmental Shifts

• Colder Ice Age winds swept the Atlantic; sea level ~100 m lower exposed a little extra coastal shelf.

• Islands experienced harsher winters, but fogs and rain maintained dense forests on Madeira and the Azores.

Subsistence & Settlement

• No humans yet. Islands populated by seabirds, giant pigeons, rails, lizards, and endemic plants (e.g., Madeira laurel forest, Azorean juniper).

Technology & Material Culture

• N/A (no humans).

Movement & Interaction Corridors

• Migratory birds connected the islands to Europe and Africa; ocean currents flowed from the Gulf Stream to the Azores front.

Cultural & Symbolic Expressions

• None, though later myths would tie the islands to Atlantis.

Environmental Adaptation & Resilience

• Ecosystems adapted to isolation, with flightless birds and large colonies of petrels.

Transition
By 28,578 BCE, Northern Macaronesia stood as untouched biotic refugia, awaiting eventual human contact.