Sahara

During the early Holocene epoch [11,000 to 5000 years before the present (yr B.P.)], the hyperarid Sahara was transformed into a mesic landscape, with widespread grasslands, variable tree cover, large per- manent lakes, and extensive river drainage networks. Evidence for this “Green Sahara” interval comes from paleolake deposits, pollen, and archaeological remains, indicating that humans inhabited, hunted, and gathered deep within the present-day desert (1–3).