ABSTRACT

Insularity defines many of the features and processes that characterise islands because it is a truly limiting factor with regard to resources. This allows scientists to study the ways in which biological or human communities have adapted to their environment (Patton, 1996; Whittaker and Fernández-Palacios, 2007; Vogiatzakis et al., 2008). Island landscapes are a product of the interaction between land and sea as well as the human imprint over the centuries; it is therefore as much physical as cultural. In these environments, the relative importance of seascape over landscape usually depends on the size of the island and is manifested on the culture. Compared to the mainland, islands are physically bounded, and particularly in Europe, they are principally cultural landscapes that are more susceptible to externalities and where the human imprint is more evident due to their size. Therefore, any attempt to characterise an island’s landscape should reflect those elements. While information is readily available and it is relatively easy to map the former, this is not the case for the latter. This is a result of different mapping traditions, disciplines and data availability (Vogiatzakis, 2011). In order to adequately define island landscapes, we must define the complex elements that contribute to their specific physiognomy (size, shape, length and fractal coastline).