Vegetation Cover and Climatic Conditions of Southwest Anatolia according to the Pollen Records during Early to Mid-Holocene

Abstract

In this study, pollen records collected from Southwest Anatolia belonging to early to mid-Holocene Period (10000 / 6000 14C years BP) reinterpretation was carried out with the biomization based on plant functional type. It was discovered that the climate conditions of 9000 14C yr BP were colder and dryer than today’s conditions while the forest vegetation in the mountainous area interior region of the Mediterranean coastal belt 50-60% of the total area. In the earlier of the Holocene ( 9000 14C yr BP), the interior Mediterranean the climate conditions were milder, that is colder and more semi humid/arid in comparison with the Younger Dryas period ( 11000/10000 14C yr BP) while steppe vegetation prevailed. In the final stages at the ends of early Holocene ( 7000 to 6000 14C yr BP) forest prevailed in a major part of Southwest Anatolia due to the impact of changing climate conditions. These results show that, unlike the other regions of Turkey, the change of the flora of Southwest Anatolia paralleled the climatic changes during the early Holocene time interval and that the steppe flora transposed into the forest pattern without delay.