Search the repository

A+ | A- | | SLO | ENG

Abstract: The area of the Classical Karst is roughly defined by a triangle with Ljubljana, Trieste and Rijeka as its vertices. This is the area where the first scientific studies of karst phenomena were conducted. Two sub-regions that particularly attracted researchers are presented. Kras/Carso plateau with the Škocjan caves and the underground course of the Reka river. The groundwater flow of Reka-Timavo is characterised by high recharge variability of allogenic inflow of Reka River and flow restrictions in the upper part of subterranean flow, which control regional backfloodings observed in cave systems. The recharge area of Ljubljanica Springs is known for a cascading series of poljes in intermediate cave systems. The area has been in focus of hydrological studies for over a century, but many phenomena have been resolved in the last decade based on results of continuous autonomous monitoring in the last decade.
Keywords: Classical Karst, Kras, Škocjanske Jame, Reka-Timavo system, Ljubljanica Recharge Area, Polje
Published in DiRROS: 13.01.2026; Views: 82; Downloads: 56
Full text (24,01 MB)
This document has many files! More...

Abstract: Cultivation practices significantly impact soil functionality and quality, however, the effects of different cultivation durations remain inadequately quantified in the fragile karst ecosystems of southwestern China. This study employed a chronosequence approach to assess agricultural soil quality changes and identify their key drivers. Five land-use stages were selected and sampled: a natural reserve forest (NR) as a reference, recently burned land (0 a), and cultivated lands with durations of 1, 5, 15, and 30 years (1 a, 5 a, 15 a, 30 a, respectively) in the subtropical karst region of southwestern China. The soil quality index (SQI) was constructed using both the Total Data Set (TDS) and Minimum Data Set (MDS) methods. Principal component analysis (PCA) identified calcium (Ca), silt content and silicon (Si) as the key indicators within the MDS. Both TDS and MDS assessments revealed a progressive decline in SQI with increasing cultivation duration following slash-and-burn practices (R²=0.67 between TDS- and MDS-derived SQIs), indicating that agricultural activities significantly alter soil physicochemical properties and lead to soil degradation. The observed decrease in soil quality may be explained by two main mechanisms: (1) depletion of the soil-forming matrix in shallow karst environments; and (2) accelerated loss of acid-insoluble residues due to enhanced weathering under cultivation. These findings highlight the high vulnerability of karst soils to long-term farming, where inherently limited pedogenic materials and intense chemical weathering collectively exacerbate quality decline. This study provides critical insights for developing sus­tainable land management strategies in karst regions, empha­sizing the importance of practices that conserve soil fertility, reduce residue loss, and maintain essential ecosystem services. With the MDS model explaining 67% of the variance in the TDS-based SQI, it represents an efficient and practical tool for monitoring soil quality in fragile karst environments, thereby supporting evidence-based sustainable land use planning.
Keywords: Soil quality index (SQI), Minimum data set (MDS), Total data set (TDS), Cultivation, Karst region
Published in DiRROS: 10.01.2026; Views: 120; Downloads: 66
Full text (3,53 MB)
This document has many files! More...

Abstract: There are 23 carbonate karst areas in Albania with a total area of 6440 km2, or 24% of the country’s territory. Karst aquifers are the richest in the country and about 80% of the water supply for the population living in cities is supplied by karst water. One of the most interesting karst massifs of Albania is called Mali me Gropa (MMG) with a total surface area of 157 km2. It is the subject of this paper. Although this massif has attracted attention due to its exceptional development of surface karst landforms (karst pits, sinkholes, swallow holes) and its large and high-quality groundwater resources, it has not been the subject of comprehensive research. In this paper, for the first time, is a summary of the results of a combination of specialized studies, including geomorphological characterization, analysis of long-term groundwater regime observations in relationship with meteorological data, water balance studies applying the recently developed WaterbalANce software method, assessment of groundwater quality and its variability, determination of the groundwater flow velocity with an artificial tracer, and the use of hydrochemistry and runoff data to determine groundwater flow patterns and sensitivity of spring water to contamination. The results of the multi-method studies conducted on the MMG karst massif will inform future studies of the numerous carbonate karst regions in Albania. A final important objective of this article is to raise public awareness about the vulnerability of karst waters and the need to protect the associated ecosystem, especially now that the MMG karst massif is in the spotlight for tourism development.
Keywords: MMG karst massif, spring’s regime, effective precipitation, water resources, Albania
Published in DiRROS: 10.01.2026; Views: 94; Downloads: 43
Full text (7,96 MB)
This document has many files! More...

Abstract: Karst formations in Albania cover an area of 6750 km², which represents 24% of the country's territory. The country has 110 karst springs with discharges exceeding 100 litters per second. Among these, Bistrica springs stands out as the largest, with an average discharge of 18.4 cubic meters per second. This study focuses on the Southern Mountain Region of Albania, known for its important karst water resources. In this region, 12 karst springs are protected due to their essential natural, scientific, educational, aesthetic and economic value. The objective of this research is to perform a geoinformatics analysis and evaluation of these protected karst resources. To achieve this, we collected extensive literature on protected springs, as well as reach data about the protected springs of the study area and analysed them using ArcGIS 10.1 software to generate geoinformation about these resources. This geoinformation includes a wide range of geographic and geologic-hydrogeological data. We aim to improve the understanding and promotion of protected karst resources in the Southern Mountain Region of Albania.
Keywords: Southern Mountainous Region of Albania, karst spring, geoinformation, geomonument
Published in DiRROS: 10.01.2026; Views: 82; Downloads: 56
Full text (7,15 MB)
This document has many files! More...

Abstract: Caves are recognized as biodiversity hotspots for groundwater fauna, including obligate groundwater-dwelling copepods (Crustacea: Copepoda), exhibiting high species richness, endemism, and phylogenetic rarity. However, the extent to which caves alone provide a representative estimate of copepod species richness in karst areas remains uncertain. Taking advantage of the recently published EGCop dataset, the first expert-validated, Europe-wide occurrence dataset for obligate groundwater-dwelling copepods (hereinafter, GW copepods), this study investigates the distribution of GW copepods into karst areas, comparing species richness in caves versus other karst groundwater habitats (e.g., springs, karst streams, artificial wells), within and among the European karst units. The main aims are: (i) identifying karst areas which represent hotpots of GW copepod species richness; (ii) assessing to which extent caves, as open windows to the subterranean environments, contribute to define hotspots of GW copepods’ species richness into karst areas across Europe. EGCop comprises 6,986 records from 588 copepod species/subspecies distributed among four orders: Cyclopoida (3,664 records, 184 species), Harpacticoida (3,288 records, 395 species), Calanoida (32 records, seven species), and Gelyelloida (two records, two species). To perform geospatial analyses, we filtered the dataset by: (i) selecting only the records with spatial uncertainty in the associated coordinates lower than 10 km; (ii) searching for those records falling within, or very close to, the polygons representing European karst areas. Species richness hotspots were then estimated through geospatial analyses in geographic information system (GIS) environment. Within the selected records, those specifically referring to karst habitats (2,526 records, 369 species) are primarily represented by Harpacticoida (1,199 records, 228 species) and Cyclopoida (1,293 records, 132 species). Among species collected from karst habitats, records from caves (1,867, 73.9%) belong to 318 species (Harpacticoida = 189, Cyclopoida = 122, Calanoida = 7), representing 86.1% of the total species richness of karst habitats. Geospatial analyses reveal that the European hotspots of GW copepods’ species richness recorded exclusively in caves reflect the spatial arrangement of postglacial refugia in southern karst regions, though representing a subset of the broader diversity found across all karst groundwater habitats. Our findings highlight that the contribution of cave systems in groundwater biodiversity assessments and related conservation planning may vary depending on the evolution and morphologies of the target karst regions—often pointing to a high representativeness of caves for subterranean biodiversity, sometimes revealing their lower explanatory power within the broader karst systems.
Keywords: copepoda, groundwater, biodiversity, datasets, caves, karst, Europe
Published in DiRROS: 19.12.2025; Views: 179; Downloads: 137
Full text (22,11 MB)
This document has many files! More...