Late quaternary vegetation and climate of southwestern Turkey

(p. 141) In this paper the palynological examination of surface samples and sediment cores from southwestern Turkey is discussed. The main objective of this study is the reconstruction of vegetation and climate in Late Quaternary times. The geology, climate and natural vegetation of south western Turkey are briefly reviewed in chapters 2, 3 and 4. A tentative reconstruction of the distribution of the major vegetation units is presented in fig. 6. Altogether 59 surface samples, originating from natural and more or less seriously degraded vegetations, were examined ( cf . fig. 10). The results of the surface-sample study are shown in tables 1-5 . Table 6, in which for a selected number of pollen types, mean percentages per sub-group are given, should facilitate a comparison of the pollen precipitation in the various vegetation types. Pinus is, again, over-represented in the pollen rain. The share of deciduous oak, Quercus calliprinos , Cedrus , Juniperus , Phillyrea , Pistacia and Olea in the pollen precipitation corresponds rather well with that in the vegetation. Striking are the rather low Abies pollen values in the samples from a fir forest. High Plantago lanceolata -type pollen values were obtained for areas with serious grazing, but, on the other hand, grazing does not necessarily lead to an expansion of plantain. A survey of the results obtained for the sediment cores from Karamik Batakligi, Beysehir Golu, Hoyran Golu, Sogut Golu and Koycegiz Golu ( cf . fig. 10) is presented in table 8. The diagrams of Karamik and Sogut suggest that in the period of ca . 20,000 to 10,000 B.P., open vegetations prevailed, implying that the climate was rather dry. Artemisia played an important part in the Full-glacial and Late-glacial steppe vegetations. During somewhat moister phases, more or less open forestst lands, consisting of pine, cedar and deciduous oak, could expand to some extent. Open vegetations prevailed during the first stages of the Postglacial, too. After ca . 8,500 B.P. forest vegetations started to expand in the mountains of southwestern Turkey. About 6,000-5,5 00 B.P. forests must entirely have taken possession of the present-day Oro-Mediterranean belt ( ca . 800-2,000 m). The establishment of the present-day natural vegetation pattern was not a synchronous phenomenon over the whole of southwestern Turkey (cf. Karamik and Sogut). The pollen evidence suggests that during the first half of the Postglacial, from ca. 10,000 to 6,000 B.P., the climate of southwestern Turkey was drier than later on. The Sogut and Beysehir diagrams reflect largescale interference of man with the vegetation in the second and first millennia B.C. The forest must have been cleared over large areas. As for palynological indications of grain-growing, various Near Eastern wild grass species produce Cerealia-type pollen grains. Fruit trees cultivated by the Beysehir and Sogut farmers included: Juglans (walnut), Castanea (sweet chestnut), Olea (olive) and Vitis (grape). Besides, Fraxinus ornus (mannaash) was planted, most probably for its manna.