Summary

1. The first map shows vegetation cover at 8,000 14C years BP (i.e. 8,000 carbon-dating years before the present)
2. The second maps shows vegetation cover at 5,000 14C years BP
3. The third map shows “present potential” vegetation, the areas of forest and desert that would be present but for human activity. The authors write that “Although it represents a ‘potential’ state, it is nevertheless much as the world would actually have looked about 4,000-3,000 14C y.a., before agriculture became important in modifying vegetation cover in many regions.”

Legend: Closed Forest; Extreme Desert.

Source

http://www.esd.ornl.gov/projects/qen/nerc.html (accessed April 30, 2007)

Adams J.M. & Faure H. (1997) (ed.s), QEN members. Review and Atlas of Palaeovegetation: Preliminary land ecosystem maps of the world since the Last Glacial Maximum. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, TN, USA. http://www.esd.ornl.gov/ern/qen/adams1.html