Interglacial

A warm period between two glaciations during with little or no glacial ice, warm climate processes, deposits, flora and fauna, and increased soil formation. The ice sheets diminish in area, and the improved climate allows the growth of temperate types of vegetation. The last 10,000 years (the Holocene) is probably an interglacial. During the Quaternary, interglacials have been considerably shorter than glacials.

Term commonly used to describe the periods of generally warm climate which occurred at intervals during the Quaternary period, interspersed between colder periods (see glacial). See Tables 5-7, pages 418-20.