Middle Ages

The forest recovery of the Migration Period (376–568 CE) ended in the Visigothic epoch, when a long-term deforestation trend lasting ~4 centuries started, reaching minimum forest cover values (>50% and almost 70% less tree pollen than modern and Late Bronze values, respectively) at the beginning of Pallars independence in the tenth century. Cereal cultivation was still the main activity, but grazing and hemp cultivation for domestic purposes were increasing. The MCA (Medieval Climate Anomaly) warming could have contributed to an upward shift in vegetation belts, as manifested in the regional decrease in montane conifer forests and pastures, which may have migrated to higher elevations. Forest opening remained fairly stable (30–40% tree pollen) during most of the Pallars County phase; when wood/charcoal extraction increased, slash-and-burn practices decreased, and cultivation and grazing continued. The prolonged MCA warmer climates may have favored the decline of montane and submontane forests, which were replaced by lower-elevation Mediterranean forests. A significant expansion of lowland olive groves was recorded since 1290 CE, probably linked to the downslope migration of human populations fostered by the onset of the Little Ice Age (LIA) cold reversal. Forest recovery started by 1350 CE due to the substantial depopulation of the Pallars region as a consequence of the ending Medieval crisis.