Landscape Temporal Evolution in a Transhumance Route in Greece
Dimitrios Kapsalis
Dimitrios Kapsalis, PhD, Department of Forestry and Natural Environment, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Manuscript received on 13 May 2025 | First Revised Manuscript received on 18 May 2025 | Second Revised Manuscript received on 17 June 2025 | Manuscript Accepted on 15 July 2025 | Manuscript published on 30 July 2025 | PP: 1-4 | Volume-14 Issue-8, July 2025 | Retrieval Number: 100.1/ijitee.G110314070625 | DOI: 10.35940/ijitee.G1103.14080725
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© The Authors. Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open access article under the CC-BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: Transhumance is a traditional pastoral practice recorded in Greece since ancient times. This extensive form of livestock farming was practiced by the three ethnic groups primarily engaged with transhumance in Greece: the Vlachs, the Koupatsaraioi, and the Sarakatsanaioi. Although the Sarakatsanaioi continue to engage with transhumance, in recent decades they have stopped moving their flocks on foot, and nowadays livestock are transported by trucks. Through our semi-structured interviews, we conducted research and recorded nineteen routes, nine of which ended at Mount Vermio. This study aims to analyze the impact of transhumance and how the shift in the method of moving flocks from winter to summer pastures affected the evolution of vegetation. The methodology we used was to map land uses within a three-kilometre-diameter impact zone in areas where overnight stops of herders with their herds had previously occurred. The research results showed that the abandonment of this traditional method of animal movement led to a densification of vegetation, specifically, an increase in the area covered by shrublands and forests, and a simultaneous decrease in grasslands. Moreover, due to lignite mining in the Mount Vermio area, the areas mapped as other uses increased. This vegetation evolution was recorded not only in the upland areas where the flocks passed through, but also in the lowland areas, which are most affected by human activity. Finally, another factor that impacted the change in the landscape was the abandonment of crops.
Keywords: Transhumance, Greece, Campsites, Grassland Reduction.
Scope of the Article: Computer Science and Applications