a geographical region that has remained unaltered by a climatic change affecting surrounding regions and that therefore forms a haven for relict fauna and flora
Word origin
C20: Latin: refuge
refugium in American English
(rɪˈfjudʒiəm)
nounWord forms: pluralreˈfugia (rɪˈfjudʒiə)
a small, isolated area that has escaped the extreme changes undergone by the surrounding area, as during a period of glaciation, allowing the survival of plants and animals from an earlier period