Past Human Activities Recorded in the Landscape: A Case Study from the Glenveagh National Park, Ireland

Abstract

The aim of the research was to investigate the persistence of landscape changes induced by former human activity in the area of the present Glenveagh National Park (NW Ireland), which was subject to intense depopulation and land abandonment in the middle of the nineteenth century. The research involved a field survey, including the earthwork survey of old anthropogenic landforms, as well as examination of available source materials, such as cartographic data (maps of habitats, land use maps) and aerial photographs. The research shows that human-induced landscape changes, old anthropogenic landforms and human-altered plant communities, are persistent in the environment, even in depopulated areas. The long-lasting persistence of anthropogenic earthworks is mainly due to the local environmental conditions, while the contemporary vegetation cover is mainly the result of economic factors, especially the long-term variations of land-use and the local economy. The present state of Glenveagh represents a cultural landscape, with both biotic and abiotic features influenced by long-term human impact. Therefore, the well preserved relics of the past can serve as a characteristic example of long-lasting human–environmental interactions. Such historic cultural landscapes are of a high educative importance and can be perceived as valuable ‘laboratories’ of human-induced environmental changes.