The pseudo-savanna dominated by Acacia caven in central Chile (espinal s.s.)
is generally agreed to be the result of anthropogenic degradation of the
sclerophyllous matorral vegetation (equivalents: maquis, chapparal, mallee,
fynbos) [Schlegel 1966; Elizaldes 1970; Olivares and Gasto 1971; Bahre 1979;
Fuentes and Hajek 1979; Rundel 1981; Balduzzi et al. 1981; Quintanilla 1981;
Etienne 1986] at least in the coastal ranges and the Andean precordillera.
Certain authors [Mann 1968; Rundel 1981; Donoso 1982], have suggested
that in the flatlands of the central valley, the espinal is a climax formation.
It seems to us [and to Fuentes et al. 1989, in review] that the espinales in the
central valley of Chile are also a recent phenomenon, i.e. no more than
500-2,000 years old, even if Acacia caven, as a taxon, has possibly been
present in the country much longer. The exact means and date by which the
espino got to Chile are of course impossible to determine [see Aronson in
prep b; Aronson and Del Pozo in prep. for discussion].