Abstract
Mediterranean mountains played an essential role during glacial periods as vegetation refugia. The SE Iberian Late Pleistocene woody angiosperm fossil and floristic evidence are reviewed in the context of phylogeographical studies aiming to identify (i) spatial patterns related to woody angiosperm glacial survival, (ii) structural and functional characteristics of montane refugia, and (iii) gaps in knowledge on the woody angiosperm patterns of survival in Mediterranean mountains. The distribution of palaeobotanical data for SE Iberian refugia has been found to be taphonomically biased due to the scarcity of available and/or studied high-altitude Late Pleistocene sites. However, Siles Lake data together with floristic inference provide evidence for woody angiosperm survival in a high-altitude Mediterranean area. The main features boosting survival in montane contexts are physiographic complexity and water availability. Phylogeography studies have mainly been conducted at a continental scale. Although they broadly align with palaeobotanical data, a general lack of sampling of SE Iberian range-edge populations, as well as misconceptions about the origin of the populations sampled, impede the inference of the proper location of woody angiosperm mountain refugia and their importance in post-glacial European colonisation. We conclude that floristic, geobotanical, palaeobotanical, ethnographical and genetic evidence should be merged to gain a deeper understanding of the role played by Mediterranean mountains as glacial refugia in order to explain the current distribution of many plants and the high biodiversity levels encountered in Mediterranean mountain areas. This is crucial for effective and efficient conservation and management.
