Since the start of mass production of plastic materials more than a century ago, the problem of accumulating plastic waste in the environment has reached epic proportions. Recently, the problem of ...smaller plastic particles (microplastic, MP) in the environment has become a widely studied topic, but the amount and types of MP in karst environments are still poorly known. Thus, the objective of this study was to collect and analyse samples from various karst habitats and to try and determine the scope of pollution in karst springs that are in part used as sources for drinking water. Of the potential pollution sources, we sampled rainwater, two discharges from wastewater treatment plants, and a leachate from a landfill. We conducted polymer analyses of potential MP particles using FTIR-ATR. The results showed that eight samples from the Postojna region (Postojna–Planina Cave System, rainfall sample and surface streams) contain up to 444 MP particles per m3. However, 32 samples taken from the Škocjan–Kačna–Jama 1 v Kanjaducah Cave System contain up to 60,000 MP particles per m3, with the bulk of particles found in the sediment samples from Škocjan Caves – Kačna Cave System. Samples from Postojna region contained mostly PET, PU and PA polymers, with a minor inclusion of polymers of plastic sponge used for cleaning. Samples from Škocjan region contained mostly PP, PET and PE polymers, with some of PA and PU polymers. Sediment samples contained much less MP particles compared to water samples, which indicates fast transport through karst aquifer.
Tourism activities in caves can result in changes in the microclimates of caves. The natural microclimate in closed caves is constant due to the balance between cave air and cave walls, while in open ...caves exchanges with outside air influence the microclimate. Visits to caves, especially in closed smaller caves, can thus endanger the natural balance if the microclimate does not return to natural conditions quickly enough.Continuous monitoring of the temperature and concentration of carbon dioxide in Škocjan Caves enables the assessment of the impact of visits. For this purpose, we used data measured in the relatively closed Silent Cave, at the locations named Calvary (Kalvarija), Tent (Šotor), and Passage (Prehod) in 2016, and in the wide open Murmuring Cave, at the locations named Bridge (Most) and Rimstone Pools (Ponvice), in 2013. The outdoor air temperature, as measured at the Škocjan meteorological station on the surface plateau, was considered in both cases. Along the tourist part of Škocjan Caves, the most closed part of the cave in Silent Cave is the location at Calvary, when the entrance doors through an artificially dug tunnel are closed. During the visits, the microclimate is subjected to draughts through open doors and to anthropogenic emissions. The data suggest that the influence of draughts predominates over direct anthropogenic emissions. In winter or on cold days air flows upwards and through the tunnel out of the cave, whereas in summer or on warm days it flows downwards. In such cases, the CO2 concentration decreases markedly due to the downwards chimney effect as the concentration in the outside air is much lower than in the cave. The data show that the temperature overnight and towards morning always returns to its natural value even in this
rather small location in the cave. The changes in CO2 concentration persist for a longer period, until the time of the first visit the next morning, when it is again perturbed by a new visit. The data on time courses support the theoretically estimated characteristic of the exponential decline of disturbances backward towards natural conditions, depending on the size of a cave and on the efficiency of exchanges with its walls. For temperature, this characteristic time tT is about three to six hours at the Calvary site. The return of CO2 to natural conditions tCO2 is longer and its estimate less reliable than the one for temperature. In the wide-open and large Murmuring Cave, the impact of visits is negligible throughout the year. In this part of the cave we can observe the influence of external daily and annual changes, the amplitudes of which get smaller, and their phase lags bigger, deeper in the cave.
Within the UNESCO Škocjan Caves, detailed geological structural mapping of the cave passages and of the surface above the cave revealed interesting structural-lithological characteristics of two ...major collapse dolines, Velika Dolina and Mala Dolina. As a result of the karst processes effects and the formation of collapse dolines, older—stratigraphically lower—carbonates of the Sežana Formation (K
2
2−4
) crop out at the surface, underlying rocks of the younger Lipica Formation (K
2
4−5
). Here we do not recognize karst windows only in a geomorphological sense but, acknowledging the characteristic lithostratigraphical relationships involved, we suggest use of the new expression “karst stratigraphical window”. Recognizing that karstic areas contain numerous collapse dolines and other doline types, we presume that many more examples of karst stratigraphical windows exist, and that these are distinct from tectonic windows. Our study showed the importance that during the making of detailed geological surface maps of karst areas, it is essential to examine features such as collapse dolines, which may be identified as karst stratigraphical windows. Therefore, providing additional geological data, information about the stratigraphic boundaries and geological structure, in areas without abundance of outcropping rocks is resulting in a more inclusive and comprehensive geological maps.
Article highlights
Detailed (in-situ) geological mapping of the karst surface and subsurface is emphasized as important base for all future karst studies.
Karst stratigraphical windows that differ from tectonic windows, were reported for the first time.
The geology of Škocjan Caves with collapse dolines, is a reference point for other sites, that might have karst stratigraphical windows.
Kljub številnim načinom vrednotenja geodiverzitete prevladujejo predvsem metode, ki temeljijo na subjektivno zasnovanih kriterijih, kar se kaže v kvaliteti in primerljivosti pridobljenih podatkov. ...Namen članka je predstaviti aplikacijo metode vrednotenja geodiverzitete, ki v veliki meri izloča subjektivne dejavnike. Metodo, s katero smo izračunali indeks geodiverzitete na podlagi hrapavosti površja in prostorsko razporeditev geodiverzitete, smo uporabili na območju Rakovega Škocjana.
Light eutrophication in show caves and other light-deprived humid environments can support visible growth of microbial mats, with photoautotrophs as the dominant group of organisms. Photosynthetic ...pigments of aerophytic cyanobacteria and eukaroytic algae impose a greenish patina upon surfaces to which -- with other community members -- they adhere strongly. Diverse eukaryotic algae, fungi, flagellates and amoebozoans were also identified within the community. These "human induced diversity hotspots" in caves are responsible for the biodeterioration of colonized surfaces that is a common result of the synergistic effects of phototrophs and heterotrophs. When sites become colonized by higher plants, such as mosses, liverworts and ferns in species succession, irreversible biodeterioration impact on rocks and speleothems becomes an even more urgent issue. Historical inscriptions and rock-art paintings are particularly sensitive to biodeterioration. Lampenflora also affects components of the cave fauna, which not only graze upon it, but also facilitate its dispersal to other parts of the caves. It can be considered a direct indicator for light eutrophication and of the available energy within the cave ecosystem.
Abstract
The aim of the study done in 2011 and 2012 was to identify the number of breeding bird species, to provide population estimates as well as to evaluate the conservational importance of ...Škocjan Caves Park for birds. Common bird species were surveyed using the territory mapping method. Rare species and nocturnally active species were surveyed using species-specific methods: observation, the playback method and the line transect method. 81 species were registered, 49 of which bred within the boundaries of the Park. The most abundant breeding species were Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla (260-320 breeding pairs), Robin Erithacus rubecula (250-310 breeding pairs), Blackbird Turdus merula (230-280 breeding pairs), Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs (230-280 breeding pairs) and Marsh Tit Poecile palustris (200-240 breeding pairs). Qualifying species for the Special Protected Area (SPA) Kras (SI5000023) also bred within the Park: Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus, Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus, Scops Owl Otus scops and Woodlark Lululla arborea. Eagle Owl Bubo bubo was also registered, but breeding attempts during the study period were unsuccessful due to the negative influence of several factors. One of the largest colonies of Alpine Swifts Apus melba, a rare and localized species in Slovenia, is also of conservation concern.
The article discusses fossil porgy fish teeth found in Middle Miocene (Badenian) sandy marl from Mastni hrib near Škocjan in Dolenjska. The teeth belong to the species Pagrus cinctus (Agassiz, 1836) ...and represent the first find in the Krka basin. In sediments of the Central Paratethys and the Mediterranean, the fossil remains of porgy fish are relatively common.
The author of this paper, who is an ethnologist and is employed at the Skocjan Caves Park, looks at the provisions of the Skocjanske Jame Regional Park Act that monitors and safeguards the cultural ...landscape in this area. The article first looks at the problems involved in the safeguarding of dry stone walls in the Park, and then explores the regulation on the construction and restoration of dry stone walls. Finally it discusses the conservation guidelines on the safeguarding and monitoring of the protected cultural landscape in the Skocjan Caves Park.
Predstavljena je brezstropa jama v Podbojevem lazu, v severozahodnem delu Rakovega Škocjana. Opisane so morfometrične in morfogenetske značilnosti več odsekov brezstrope jame in njene okolice. ...Brezstropa jama se je razvila iz epifreatičnega jamskega sistema, ki je deloval kot odtočni sistem iz doline Raka. Na podlagi podrobne morfometrične analize pobočij je bilo ugotovljeno, da brezstropa jama ni nastala sočasno. Zaradi neuravnanega površja je bil jamski strop denudiran postopoma.
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