Northern Macaronesia (7,821 – 6,094 BCE) Early Holocene — Cloud Forests and Ocean Abundance

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.

• Madeira’s laurel forests reached peak extent, fed by fog condensation.

• Azores covered with mixed forests and crater-lake wetlands.

Climate & Environmental Shifts

• Atlantic warm, stable rainfall. Trade winds intensified fog drip on mountain slopes.

Subsistence & Settlement

• Still no human presence. Endemic species thrived — giant pigeons, petrels, lizards, and bats.

Technology & Material Culture

• N/A.

Movement & Interaction Corridors

• Ocean currents made accidental drift from Iberia or NW Africa possible, though unlikely this early.

Cultural & Symbolic Expressions

• None.

Environmental Adaptation & Resilience

• Ecosystems reached Holocene balance, with laurisilva forests locking in soil and moisture.

Transition
By 6,094 BCE, Northern Macaronesia’s ecosystems were at their most intact.