Late glacial and Holocene vegetation of the Corbières based on charcoal analysis at the Cova de l'espérit (Salses, Pyrénées orientales, France)

Charcoal analysis from the end of the Würm Glaciation and the Holocene at Cova de l'Espérit reveals the coexistence, in the Corbières region, of thermo-and meso-Mediterranean taxa. Three principal paleoecological phases are described: the first corresponds to the Upper Paleolithic (Würm III), the period of maximum cold, dominated by Juniperus assemblages. The second phase includes levels from the end of the Mesolithic and early Neolithic. It shows the appearance of mesothermic species such as Buxus sempervirens, Acer sp. and Quercus ilex, at the same time as the development of a thermophilic suite of species e.g. Olea europaea, Rosmarinus officinalis and Pistacia. During this period, the effect of man on the environment remained slight. The third phase consists of the middle Neolithic and more recent periods and reveals the degradation of the environment due to the development of agriculture and animal husbandry. The Garrigue—a mediterranean open human-influenced vegetation—has persisted up to the present.