The Madeira evergreen forests is a laurissilvaecoregion of southwestern Europe. It covers the archipelago of Madeira and some nearby islands (Desertas and Selvagens) in the Atlantic Ocean. Laurel forest (Laurisilva) once covered the islands. Over centuries the laurel forests were mostly cleared. Madeira's remaining forests are now protected.
Geography
The islands are an autonomous region of Portugal. They lie southwest of the Portuguese mainland in the Atlantic Ocean, 978 kilometres (608mi) southwest of Lisbon and 560 kilometres (350mi) west of Morocco.
Madeira is the largest island and highest island, with an area of 741 square kilometres (286sqmi). The island extends east–west approximately 57 kilometres (35mi), and is 22 kilometres (14mi) at its widest point. A mountainous spine runs the length of the island, and Pico Ruivo, the highest peak, reaches 1,861 meters (6,106ft) above sea level. Porto Santo Island, which lies 43 kilometres (27mi) northeast of Madeira. is the second-largest island with an area of 42.2 square kilometres (16.3sqmi).
The Desertas Islands are a chain of three narrow islands about 25 kilometres (16mi) southeast of Madeira, covering an area of 14.2 square kilometres (5.5sqmi).
The Selvagens are a group of small islands lying 280 kilometres (170mi) south of Madeira, and 165 kilometres (103mi) north of the Canary Islands. The Selvagens have a total area of 2.73 square kilometres (1.05sqmi).
The islands are volcanic in origin. Basalt and volcanic ash are common substrate rocks, with some areas of uplifted limestone of marine origin. The volcanic soils are generally fertile, sustaining both the native forests and agriculture on the two larger islands.[2]
The islands of Madeira and Porto Santo are inhabited. The archipelago has a population of 289,000 (2016 estimate), mostly on Madeira. Funchal, on Madeira's south shore, is the islands' largest city and principal port.
Climate
The climate of Madeira is subtropical and maritime. The average annual temperature ranges between 15 and 20°C at sea level. The climate becomes more temperate with elevation, and frost and snow occur most winters on Madeira's high elevations. Average annual precipitation ranges from 250 to 750 millimetres (9.8 to 29.5in). Prevailing winds are from the northeast, and rainfall is higher on the windward north side of the island. The mountain slopes are frequently shrouded in orographic clouds and fog, sustaining cloud forests in the wettest areas.[2]
Before Madeira was settled, laurel forests, known as laurissilva covered most of the island. Laurissilva now covers 16% of the island, and is found between 300 and 1,300 metres (980 and 4,270ft) elevation on the Madeira's wet north-facing slopes, and from 700 to 1,600 metres (2,300 to 5,200ft) elevation on the south-facing slopes.[2]
Laurissilva is characterized by evergreen trees with glossy leaves, and trees in the laurel family (Lauraceae) are prominent. The laurissilva is similar to the ancient subtropical forests of the Mediterranean Basin, prior to its climate cooling and drying during the ice ages. The paleobotanical record of Madeira reveals that laurissilva forests has existed in this island for at least 1.8million years.[5] The Canary Islands and Azores are home to smaller areas of laurissilva.
Mountain heathland grows on the high ridges and mountains above the laurissilva. Characteristic shrubs are tree heath (Erica arborea), besom heath (Erica platycodon ssp. maderincola), and Madeira juniper (Juniperus cedrus).[2]
Along the southern coast, low forests dominated by the endemic wild olive tree (Olea europaea subsp. cerasiformis) and the shrubs Maytenus umbellata, Chamaemeles coriacea (a Madeiran endemic), Dracaena draco, and Asparagus scoparius survive in coastal ravines up to 200 metres (660ft) elevation. A secondary coastal shrubland of Euphorbia piscatoria, Echium nervosum. and Globularia salicina forms in disturbed areas. Low forests dominated by marmolano (Sideroxylon mirmulano) occur along the northern shore, and in pockets above the south shore Olea forests from 200 to 300 metres (660 to 980ft) elevation. Other coastal plant communities include low shrubland, perennial grassland, and annual grassland.[6]
The laurissilva forests of the island of Madeira have been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International.[7] Some 295 bird species and subspecies have been recorded on the Islands, and 42 of them breed here. Endemic bird species include the Trocaz pigeon (Columba trocaz), Zino's petrel (Pterodroma madeira), Desertas petrel (Pterodroma deserta), and Madeira firecrest (Regulus maderensis). The Madeira chaffinch (Fringilla madeirensis) is an endemic forest species related to the Eurasian chaffinch.[3]Berthelot's pipit (Anthus bertheloti) and Atlantic canary (Serinus canaria) are Macaronesian endemics. Tyto alba schmitzi is a Madeiran subspecies of Western barn owl, Accipiter nisus granti is a Macaronesian subspecies of Eurasian sparrowhawk, and Falco tinnunculus canariensis is a Macaronesian subspecies of common kestrel. The plain swift (Apus unicolor) breeds on Madeira and the Canary Islands, and ranges over northwestern Africa.[2] Two extinct species of rail, the Madeira rail (Rallus lowei) and Porto Santo rail (Rallus adolfocaesaris), once inhabited the archipelago, on Madeira and Porto Santo islands respectively.
Two bats inhabit the islands – the Madeira pipistrelle (Pipistrellus maderensis), a Macaronesian endemic, and a subspecies of lesser noctule (Nyctalus leisleri verrucosus).[2]
The islands have two endemic lizards. The Madeiran wall lizard (Teira dugesii) lives on Madeira, Porto Santo, the Desertas, and the Selvagens.
The islands have over 500 terrestrial invertebrate species, including insects, spiders, and molluscs.[2]
Human impacts
Portuguese settlers arrived after 1420, and are the first known settlers. The islands' trees were cut for their timber, and Persea indica was the most sought after. In the 16th and 17th centuries the southern side of Madeira was converted to sugarcane plantations. A system of levadas, water channels 80 to 150 centimetres (31 to 59in) wide, was constructed of stone and later concrete to irrigate the sugarcane fields. Forests and shrublands were denuded to provide charcoal for the islands' sugar mills. Goats, sheep, and cows were introduced to the islands, and forests were converted to pasture land, and the forest understory was grazed intensively.[2]
Many exotic plants and animals have been introduced to the islands. A few are invasive. Plantations of Pinus pinaster and Eucalyptus globulus were planted at middle elevations. Eucalyptus has spread extensively on the south slope of Madeira, displacing native species.[3]
Approximately 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of laurissilva remain on Madeira, mostly on the northern side of the island. 90% of the laurissilva is primary forest, and includes trees up to 800 years old that predate settlement of the islands. The remaining 10% is secondary growth in areas that were last cut during the mid-20th century.[2]
483 square kilometres (186sqmi) (60%) of the ecoregion is in protected areas.[1]Madeira Natural Park, established in 1982, protects an area of 444 square kilometres (171sqmi), covering most of Madeira including the island's remaining laurissilva forests. From the 1980s goats and sheep were removed from the forests and the non-forested areas of the park, which has allowed the forest understory and shrublands to recover.
The Madeira Islands laurel forest was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999, covering an area of 150 square kilometres (58sqmi).[2] It is believed to be 90% primordial forest. The paleobotanical record of the island of Madeira reveals that the laurel forest existed on this island at least 1.8 million years ago.[8]
UNESCO justified the inclusion of this place within the world heritage precisely because it is the largest remaining laurel forest, in the past spread throughout Europe while today is practically extinct. In addition, this type of forest is considered a center of plant biodiversity and contains numerous endemic, residual and rare species, especially bryophytes, ferns and flowering plants. It also has a very rich invertebrate fauna, appearing among the endemic species of the island, the Madeira laurel pigeon.[9]
The Selvagens were made a nature reserve in 1971, and the Desertas in 1990.[10]
12Eric Dinerstein, David Olson, et al. (2017). An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm, BioScience, Volume 67, Issue 6, June 2017, Pages 534–545; Supplemental material 2 table S1b.
1234567891011121314"Laurisilva of Madeira". World Heritage Data Sheet, February 1999. Updated 4-1999, 10-1999, 12-2009, May 2011. Accessed 8 August 2020.
↑Endemic plants of Madeira, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP) checklist builder. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
↑Góis-Marques, Carlos A.; Madeira, José; Menezes de Sequeira, Miguel (7 February 2017). "Inventory and review of the Mio–Pleistocene São Jorge flora (Madeira Island, Portugal): palaeoecological and biogeographical implications". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 16 (2): 159–177. doi:10.1080/14772019.2017.1282991. hdl:10400.13/4191.
↑Capelo, Jorge, Miguel Sequeira, Roberto Jardim, Sandra Mesquita, and José Carlos Costa (2005). "The vegetation of Madeira Island (Portugal). A brief overview and excursion guide". Quercetea 7: 95-122, 2005 ALFA, Lisboa, Portugal.
↑"Laurissilva". BirdLife Data Zone. BirdLife International. 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
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