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Macaronesia

February 16, 2024

Not to be confused with Micronesia.

Macaronesia (Portuguese: Macaronésia; Spanish: Macaronesia) is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, off the coasts of Africa and Europe.[1] Each archipelago is made up of a number of Atlantic oceanic islands, which are formed by seamounts on the ocean floor whose peaks have risen above the ocean's surface.[2] They are grouped politically into four groups- the Azores and Madeira archipelagos are part of Portugal, the Canary Islands are part of Spain, and the Cape Verde islands comprise their own sovereign nation.[3][4][5] Politically, the islands belonging to Portugal and Spain are part of the European Union. Geologically, most of Macaronesia is part of the African tectonic plate. The Azores are located in the triple junction between the Eurasian, North American and African plates.[Note 1][6][7]

Macaronesia

In one biogeographical system, the Cape Verde archipelago is in the Afrotropical realm while the other three archipelagos are in the Palearctic realm. According to the European Environment Agency, the three European archipelagos constitute a unique bioregion, known as the Macaronesian Biogeographic Region.[8] The World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions places the whole of Macaronesia in its botanical continent of Africa.[9]

In 2022, Macaronesia had an estimated combined population of 3,222,054 people; 2,172,944 (67%) in the Canary Islands, 561,901 (17%) in Cape Verde, 250,769 (8%) in Madeira and 236,440 (7%) in the Azores.[10][11][12]

Etymology edit

The name Macaronesia is derived from the Greek words meaning 'islands of the fortunate' (μακάρων νήσοι, makárōn nēsoi). The name was first used by ancient Greek geographers to refer to any islands west of the Strait of Gibraltar. Macaronesia is occasionally misspelled Macronesia in false analogy with Micronesia, an unrelated group of archipelagos in the Pacific Ocean whose English name is also derived from Greek.

Archipelagos edit

Further information: List of islands in Macaronesia
 
 
 
 
Flags of the Macaronesian archipelagos

Macaronesia consists of four main archipelagos. From north to south, these are:[9]

Geography and geology edit

 
Layers of volcanic tephra from the 1957 eruption of Capelinhos on Faial in the Azores. Macaronesian islands are created by volcanic activity.

The islands of Macaronesia are volcanic in origin, and are thought to be the product of several geologic hotspots.[2] Due to the geographic location, varied relief and altitudinal ranges, the Macaronesian mountains represent a wide range of climates. There are maritime temperate, Mediterranean, and subtropical climates in the Azores and Madeira; Mediterranean and subtropical climates in some of the Canary Islands; arid and semiarid climates in certain geologically older islands of the Canaries (notably Lanzarote and Fuerteventura) and in some of the islands of the Madeira Archipelago (Selvagens and Porto Santo) and Cape Verde (Sal, Boa Vista and Maio); and a tropical climate in the younger islands of both of the southernmost archipelagos (Santo Antão, Santiago, and Fogo in Cape Verde). In some locations, there are variations in climate due to the rain shadow effect. The laurisilva forests of Macaronesia are a type of mountain cloud forest with relict plant species of a vegetation type that originally covered much of the Mediterranean Basin, when the climate of that region was more humid. These plant species, many of which are endemic, have evolved to adapt to the islands’ variable climatic conditions.

The Macaronesian islands have a biogeography that is unique in the world. They are home to several distinct plant and animal communities. Notably, the jumping spider genus Macaroeris is even named after Macaronesia. Because none of the Macaronesian islands were ever part of any continent, all of the native plants and animals reached the islands via long-distance dispersal. Laurel-leaved forests, called laurisilva, once covered most of the Azores, Madeira, and parts of the Canaries at an altitude of between 400 and 1,200 metres (1,300 and 3,900 ft) (the eastern Canaries and Cape Verde being too dry). These forests resemble the ancient forests that covered the Mediterranean basin and northwestern Africa before the cooling and drying of the ice ages. Trees of the genera Apollonias, Clethra, Dracaena, Ocotea, Persea, and Picconia, which are found in the Macaronesian laurel forests, are also known (from fossil evidence) to have flourished around the Mediterranean before the ice ages.

Conservation issues edit

 
Remaining patches of Macaronesia's threatened primeval laurisilva forest (except in Cape Verde) were protected by EU law in 2001.

Much of the original native vegetation has been displaced because of human activity, including felling forests for timber and firewood, clearing vegetation for grazing and agriculture, and introducing foreign plants and animals into the islands. The laurisilva habitat has been reduced to small disconnected pockets. As a result, many of the endemic biota of the islands are now seriously endangered or extinct. Alien predators – in particular domestic and feral cats – currently pose one of the most serious threats to the endemic fauna. Even though cats prey mostly on other foreign-introduced mammals, such as rodents and rabbits, the abundance of such prey sustains such a large feline population that it has initiated a so-called hyperpredation process, which further increases that population's negative impact on the number of endemic reptiles and birds.[clarification needed][13]

Since 2001, the European Union's conservation efforts, mandated by its Natura 2000 regulations, have resulted in the protection of large stretches of land and sea in the Azores, Madeira, and the Canary Islands, totalling 5,000 km2 (1,900 sq mi).[14]

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ The islands of Flores and Corvo are in the North American plate, the island of Santa Maria is in the African plate, the rest of the islands are in the diffuse boundary between the Eurasian and the African plates.

References edit

  1. ^ "Where Is Macaronesia?". WorldAtlas. 25 May 2018. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
  2. ^ a b Carracedo, Juan Carlos; Troll, Valentin R. (2021-01-01). "North-East Atlantic Islands: The Macaronesian Archipelagos". Encyclopedia of Geology. pp. 674–699. doi:10.1016/B978-0-08-102908-4.00027-8. ISBN 9780081029091. S2CID 226588940.
  3. ^ "Countries .::. UCLA Africa Studies Center". www.international.ucla.edu. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  4. ^ "Canary Islands – Spain". greenwichmeantime.com. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  5. ^ (PDF). Avcan.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2013-09-02.
  6. ^ Nunes, João Carlos (2014). "The Azores Archipelago: Islands of Geodiversity". In Erfurt-Cooper, Patricia (ed.). (PDF). Springer. p. 57. ISBN 978-3-642-16190-2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  7. ^ Marques, Fernando; Catalão, João; Hildenbrand, Anthony; Costa, Ana; Dias, Nuno (21 October 2014). (PDF). Tectonophysics. 633: 116, 122. doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2014.06.024. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  8. ^ "The Macaronesian Region". ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
  9. ^ a b Brummitt, R.K. (2001). (PDF). International Working Group on Taxonomic Databases For Plant Sciences (TDWG). p. 37. Archived from the original on 2016-01-25. Retrieved 2016-04-06.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  10. ^ "Población por comunidades y ciudades autónomas y sexo". Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  11. ^ "Population, total - Cabo Verde". World Bank. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  12. ^ "Resident population (No.) by Place of residence, Sex and Age group; Decennial - Statistics Portugal, Population and housing census - 2021". INE. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  13. ^ Jorge (28 March 2013). "Stray pets: Cat diet in Macaronesia (Atlantic Ocean)". Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  14. ^ "The Macaronesian Region". European Commission. Retrieved 17 May 2017.

External links edit

  •   Media related to Macaronesia at Wikimedia Commons
  • European Union: Report on biodiversity in Macaronesia
  • Review on cats' diet on Macaronesian islands

24°15′24″N 22°28′16″W / 24.25667°N 22.47111°W / 24.25667; -22.47111

February 16, 2024
macaronesia, confused, with, micronesia, portuguese, macaronésia, spanish, collection, four, volcanic, archipelagos, north, atlantic, coasts, africa, europe, each, archipelago, made, number, atlantic, oceanic, islands, which, formed, seamounts, ocean, floor, w. Not to be confused with Micronesia Macaronesia Portuguese Macaronesia Spanish Macaronesia is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic off the coasts of Africa and Europe 1 Each archipelago is made up of a number of Atlantic oceanic islands which are formed by seamounts on the ocean floor whose peaks have risen above the ocean s surface 2 They are grouped politically into four groups the Azores and Madeira archipelagos are part of Portugal the Canary Islands are part of Spain and the Cape Verde islands comprise their own sovereign nation 3 4 5 Politically the islands belonging to Portugal and Spain are part of the European Union Geologically most of Macaronesia is part of the African tectonic plate The Azores are located in the triple junction between the Eurasian North American and African plates Note 1 6 7 MacaronesiaIn one biogeographical system the Cape Verde archipelago is in the Afrotropical realm while the other three archipelagos are in the Palearctic realm According to the European Environment Agency the three European archipelagos constitute a unique bioregion known as the Macaronesian Biogeographic Region 8 The World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions places the whole of Macaronesia in its botanical continent of Africa 9 In 2022 Macaronesia had an estimated combined population of 3 222 054 people 2 172 944 67 in the Canary Islands 561 901 17 in Cape Verde 250 769 8 in Madeira and 236 440 7 in the Azores 10 11 12 Contents 1 Etymology 2 Archipelagos 3 Geography and geology 4 Conservation issues 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 8 External linksEtymology editThe name Macaronesia is derived from the Greek words meaning islands of the fortunate makarwn nhsoi makarōn nesoi The name was first used by ancient Greek geographers to refer to any islands west of the Strait of Gibraltar Macaronesia is occasionally misspelled Macronesia in false analogy with Micronesia an unrelated group of archipelagos in the Pacific Ocean whose English name is also derived from Greek Archipelagos editFurther information List of islands in Macaronesia nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Flags of the Macaronesian archipelagos Macaronesia consists of four main archipelagos From north to south these are 9 the Azores an Autonomous Region of Portugal Madeira including the Savage Islands an Autonomous Region of Portugal the Canary Islands an Autonomous Community of Spain Cape Verde an independent West African countryGeography and geology editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed June 2018 Learn how and when to remove this template message nbsp Layers of volcanic tephra from the 1957 eruption of Capelinhos on Faial in the Azores Macaronesian islands are created by volcanic activity The islands of Macaronesia are volcanic in origin and are thought to be the product of several geologic hotspots 2 Due to the geographic location varied relief and altitudinal ranges the Macaronesian mountains represent a wide range of climates There are maritime temperate Mediterranean and subtropical climates in the Azores and Madeira Mediterranean and subtropical climates in some of the Canary Islands arid and semiarid climates in certain geologically older islands of the Canaries notably Lanzarote and Fuerteventura and in some of the islands of the Madeira Archipelago Selvagens and Porto Santo and Cape Verde Sal Boa Vista and Maio and a tropical climate in the younger islands of both of the southernmost archipelagos Santo Antao Santiago and Fogo in Cape Verde In some locations there are variations in climate due to the rain shadow effect The laurisilva forests of Macaronesia are a type of mountain cloud forest with relict plant species of a vegetation type that originally covered much of the Mediterranean Basin when the climate of that region was more humid These plant species many of which are endemic have evolved to adapt to the islands variable climatic conditions The Macaronesian islands have a biogeography that is unique in the world They are home to several distinct plant and animal communities Notably the jumping spider genus Macaroeris is even named after Macaronesia Because none of the Macaronesian islands were ever part of any continent all of the native plants and animals reached the islands via long distance dispersal Laurel leaved forests called laurisilva once covered most of the Azores Madeira and parts of the Canaries at an altitude of between 400 and 1 200 metres 1 300 and 3 900 ft the eastern Canaries and Cape Verde being too dry These forests resemble the ancient forests that covered the Mediterranean basin and northwestern Africa before the cooling and drying of the ice ages Trees of the genera Apollonias Clethra Dracaena Ocotea Persea and Picconia which are found in the Macaronesian laurel forests are also known from fossil evidence to have flourished around the Mediterranean before the ice ages Conservation issues edit nbsp Remaining patches of Macaronesia s threatened primeval laurisilva forest except in Cape Verde were protected by EU law in 2001 Much of the original native vegetation has been displaced because of human activity including felling forests for timber and firewood clearing vegetation for grazing and agriculture and introducing foreign plants and animals into the islands The laurisilva habitat has been reduced to small disconnected pockets As a result many of the endemic biota of the islands are now seriously endangered or extinct Alien predators in particular domestic and feral cats currently pose one of the most serious threats to the endemic fauna Even though cats prey mostly on other foreign introduced mammals such as rodents and rabbits the abundance of such prey sustains such a large feline population that it has initiated a so called hyperpredation process which further increases that population s negative impact on the number of endemic reptiles and birds clarification needed 13 Since 2001 the European Union s conservation efforts mandated by its Natura 2000 regulations have resulted in the protection of large stretches of land and sea in the Azores Madeira and the Canary Islands totalling 5 000 km2 1 900 sq mi 14 See also edit nbsp Africa portal nbsp Europe portal nbsp European Union portal nbsp Geography portalFortunate Isles Geology of the Azores Geology of the Canary Islands Geology of Cape Verde Geology of Madeira Laurel forest List of islands in the Atlantic Ocean Regions of Europe West AfricaNotes edit The islands of Flores and Corvo are in the North American plate the island of Santa Maria is in the African plate the rest of the islands are in the diffuse boundary between the Eurasian and the African plates References edit Where Is Macaronesia WorldAtlas 25 May 2018 Retrieved 2019 07 08 a b Carracedo Juan Carlos Troll Valentin R 2021 01 01 North East Atlantic Islands The Macaronesian Archipelagos Encyclopedia of Geology pp 674 699 doi 10 1016 B978 0 08 102908 4 00027 8 ISBN 9780081029091 S2CID 226588940 Countries UCLA Africa Studies Center www international ucla edu Retrieved 18 June 2019 Canary Islands Spain greenwichmeantime com Retrieved 18 June 2019 Makavol 2010 Teneguia Workshop PDF Avcan org Archived from the original PDF on 2012 04 25 Retrieved 2013 09 02 Nunes Joao Carlos 2014 The Azores Archipelago Islands of Geodiversity In Erfurt Cooper Patricia ed Volcanic Tourist Destinations PDF Springer p 57 ISBN 978 3 642 16190 2 Archived from the original PDF on 14 January 2024 Retrieved 14 January 2024 Marques Fernando Catalao Joao Hildenbrand Anthony Costa Ana Dias Nuno 21 October 2014 The 1998 Faial earthquake Azores Evidence for a transform fault associated with the Nubia Eurasia plate boundary PDF Tectonophysics 633 116 122 doi 10 1016 j tecto 2014 06 024 Archived from the original PDF on 14 January 2024 Retrieved 14 January 2024 The Macaronesian Region ec europa eu Retrieved 2019 07 08 a b Brummitt R K 2001 World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions Edition 2 PDF International Working Group on Taxonomic Databases For Plant Sciences TDWG p 37 Archived from the original on 2016 01 25 Retrieved 2016 04 06 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint bot original URL status unknown link Poblacion por comunidades y ciudades autonomas y sexo Retrieved 15 November 2022 Population total Cabo Verde World Bank Retrieved 17 November 2022 Resident population No by Place of residence Sex and Age group Decennial Statistics Portugal Population and housing census 2021 INE Retrieved 17 November 2022 Jorge 28 March 2013 Stray pets Cat diet in Macaronesia Atlantic Ocean Retrieved 18 June 2019 The Macaronesian Region European Commission Retrieved 17 May 2017 External links edit nbsp Media related to Macaronesia at Wikimedia Commons European Union Report on biodiversity in Macaronesia Review on cats diet on Macaronesian islands 24 15 24 N 22 28 16 W 24 25667 N 22 47111 W 24 25667 22 47111 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Macaronesia amp oldid 1204650033, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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