Study challenges myth of Europe's ancient dense forests
Research spanning 23 million years shows landscapes of scattered trees and grasslands shaped by large herbivores
A new study challenges the long-held belief that Europe was covered by dense, continuous forests before human intervention. Instead, for more than 20 million years, the continent was a mosaic of open woodlands, grasslands, and wildflower meadows, helped to persist by large grazing animals like elephants and rhinos. The findings, published in Biological Conservation, question current reforestation strategies that prioritize planting dense forests.