Man landing on Madeira could be four centuries prior to its colonization by the Portuguese
Channel: CSIC Comunicación
Date: 2014-04-29

Four centuries before its colonization by the Portuguese, man may have landed on Madeira Island. This can be deduced from a study led by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), based on the dating of some ancient mice bones found in a fossiliferous site in Ponta de São Lourenço. According to the results, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B journal, house mice may have landed on the island before 1036, most likely transported by a ship. The article suggests that the introduction of this species would result in an ecological disaster. 

Until now, the arrival of the man to Macaronesia was documented in two waves: one being aboriginal, limited to the Canary Islands about two millenniums ago; and the other colonial, from the 14th century onwards, which took place in every island of the archipelago. According to historical data, the Portuguese took official possession of Madeira in 1949, when the colonization was started.