The extinction of iconic species such as the dodo and the deforestation of Easter Island are emblematic of the transformative impact of human colonization of many oceanic islands, especially those in the tropics and subtropics. Yet, the interaction of prehistoric and colonial-era colonists with the forests and forest resources they encountered can be complex, varies between islands, and remains poorly understood. Long-term ecological records (e.g., fossil pollen) provide the means to understand these human impacts in relation to natural change and variability pre- and postcolonization. Here we analyze paleoecological archives in forested landscapes of the Canary Islands and Cabo Verde, first colonized approximately 2,400 to 2,000 and 490 y ago, respectively. We demonstrate sensitivity to regional climate change prior to human colonization, followed by divergent but gradual impacts of early human settlement. These contrast with more rapid transformation in the colonial era, associated with significant increases in anthropogenic pressures. In the Canary Islands, at least two native tree taxa became extinct and lowland thermophilous woodlands were largely converted to agricultural land, yet relictual subtropical laurel forests persisted with limited incursion of nonnative species. In Cabo Verde, in contrast, thermophilous woodlands were depleted and substituted by open landscapes and introduced woodlands. Differences between these two archipelagos reflect the changing cultural practices and societal interactions with forests and illustrate the importance of long-term data series in understanding the human footprint on island ecosystems, information that will be critically important for current and future forest restoration and conservation management practices in these two biodiversity hotspots.

渡渡鸟等标志性物种的灭绝和复活节岛的森林砍伐是人类殖民许多海洋岛屿，尤其是热带和亚热带岛屿的变革性影响的象征。然而，史前和殖民时代殖民者与他们遇到的森林和森林资源之间的相互作用可能很复杂，因岛屿而异，并且仍然知之甚少。长期生态记录（例如化石花粉）提供了理解这些人类影响与殖民前后自然变化和变异相关的方法。在这里，我们分析了加那利群岛和佛得角森林景观中的古生态档案，分别在大约 2,400 至 2,000 年和 490 年前首次殖民。我们在人类殖民之前就表现出对区域气候变化的敏感性，其次是早期人类定居的不同但渐进的影响。这些与殖民时代更迅速的转变形成鲜明对比，后者与人为压力的显着增加有关。在加那利群岛，至少有两种本地树种灭绝，低地嗜热林地大部分转变为农业用地，但残存的亚热带月桂林仍然存在，非本地物种的入侵有限。相比之下，在佛得角，嗜热林地枯竭，取而代之的是开阔的景观和引入的林地。这两个群岛之间的差异反映了不断变化的文化习俗和与森林的社会互动，并说明了长期数据系列对于了解人类在岛屿生态系统上的足迹的重要性，