Quaternary Shifts and Anthropization

In the Caribbean region, the oldest Pleistocene mangrove records date from the Last Interglacial (Eemian or MIS 5e), around 130 kyr BP, which is due to the lack of studies on older sediments. During this time, global average temperatures and sea levels were slightly higher than they are today, and mangroves thrived in conditions similar to those found in current locations. Between approximately 70 and 30 kyr BP, during the Last Glaciation, Caribbean temperatures and sea levels were considerably lower (about 5 °C and 100 m, respectively). Mangroves existed in areas far from their current locations, situated on sites now submerged. The present-day configuration of mangroves gradually took shape after the warming of the Early Holocene, starting around 8000 cal yr BP, and the subsequent rise in sea levels, all without significant human influence. Human impact on mangroves became notable in the Mid–Late Holocene. The earliest evidence of human interference with mangroves dates back to around 5500 cla yr BP when Preclassic Maya societies practiced agriculture. They cleared mangroves using fire for cultivating maize and squash, an event known as Mesoamerican Archaic Disturbance (MAD). Throughout the last millennium, ecological changes in mangroves have been primarily driven by episodic droughts associated with the Little Ice Age. Although there is a lack of evidence for mangrove disturbance during known prehistoric cultural crises or European contact, the loss and fragmentation of mangroves due to human activities in recent centuries have been well documented.