The effects of land use changes on forests and agricultural areas in the central Taurus Mountains of Turkey have been studied. In this region a progressive conversion of extensive grazing was observed towards more intensively farmed arable land in recent decades. The loss of forest land is obvious, and the remaining forests are currently severely degraded and fragmented. Based on a model area it was shown that forests accounted for more than 80% of the land cover in the 1960s. In the following decades the forest area decreased by more than 20%. To the same extent, the share of agricultural land increased, predominantly of the pastures, too. The use of pastures in turn was replaced in the 1990s by arable use, so that now for almost 30% of land use accont for production crop. Accordingly, the way of life of the rural population changed in the last 50 years. By the middle of the 20th century, people had mostly been living as nomads. Thereafter, they become increasingly stationary. While the population density decreased at the some time agriculture was intensified and livestock reduced. This change leds to today to profound changes in the landscape of the Taurus Mountains and its unique habitats. Restrictive measures as a way to curb forest degradation and to intensify the use of arable land are discussed.
To cite this article (Atıf) : Güneş, Y., Reif, A., Huss, J., 2016. Türkiye Orta Toroslar bölgesinde peyzaj ve arazi kullanımı değişikliği. Journal of the Faculty of Forestry Istanbul University 66(1): 184-197. DOI: 10.17099/jffiu.27530