Analysis of human induced changes in a karst landscape — the filling of dolines in the Kras plateau, Slovenia

Kovačič, Gregor; Ravbar, Nataša

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.01.002

Cited by 43 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Therefore, to protect the value of sinkholes as refugia for rare plants as well as for food safety, it is highly recommended to not use sinkhole areas as arable lands. After assessing the harmful effects of land-use change on the karst landscape of Slovenia, Kovačič and Barrage [12] found that 1/4 sinkholes disappeared because of population growth and settlement area increase over the past 40 years and more sinkholes are on the verge of extinction. This is because of the vulnerability of the karst environment, which is a nonrenewable natural resource.…”

Section: Influence Of Human Activities On the Sinkhole Environmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The development of sinkholes determines to some extent the high diversity and endemism of local biota; however, at the same time, they may also become endangered habitats, as they may lose their restoration characteristics because of changes in surface conditions [2]. The karst environment is extremely sensitive to human activities, and human interference and use of sinkholes to varying degrees may lead to the degradation of its environmental value, that is, the biological shelters will disappear [12]. In Slovenia, where sinkholes have been developed to meet agricultural needs or become landfills, such anthropogenic land degradation can have a significant negative effect on the fragile sinkhole environment [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Bryophyte diversity in karst sinkholes affected by different degrees of human disturbance

2019

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The diversity of bryophytes in karst sinkholes has received little attention, and these habitats probably play a crucial role as refugia. In this study, bryophyte diversity affected by different levels of human disturbance in five karst sinkholes was compared. A total of 132 species of bryophytes (17 liverworts and 115 mosses) that belong to 64 genera and 30 families were recorded. The richness of the bryophytes in the natural sinkholes was significantly higher than that of the bryophytes in the sinkholes affected by tourism and used as farmland. Canonical correspondence analysis showed that soil moisture is one of the most important factors that affect the abundance of bryophyte distribution in the five sinkholes. Human activities, including agriculture, animal husbandry, and tourism development, reduce the bryophyte coverage of sinkholes and lead to soil moisture loss. Therefore, effective protection of karst sinkholes is required to maintain their original value for biodiversity conservation.

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Section: Influence Of Human Activities On the Sinkhole Environmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bryophyte diversity in karst sinkholes affected by different degrees of human disturbance

2019

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“…Gutiérrez et al (2014) pointed out that illegal waste dumping and infiltration of liquid waste from landfills have effects on 1) water quality deterioration; 2) changes in karst landscape; 3) ecosystem contamination, and 4) extinction of rare species. Some studies on doline degradation in Dinaric Karst landscapes were done in regard to uncontrolled waste dumping and landfilling (Breg 2007;Cernatič Gregorič & Zega 2010;Kovačič & Ravbar 2013;Breg Valjavec 2014) and the impacts were evaluated from various perspectives, such as hydrology METHODS GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOLOGICAL SETTINGS OF THE STUDy AREA The study was conducted on Logaško polje, one of the most northern of the 130 poljes in the Dinaric Karst (Gams 1978;Mihevc et al 2010). Due to intensive afforestation that affected Dinaric Karst in past decades this region is characterized as a landscape coldspot (Perko et al 2017).…”

Section: ) Mateja Breg Valja�ec Daniela Ribeiro and Andraž čArni: Vegementioning

confidence: 99%

Vegetation as the Bioindicator of Human-induced Degradation in Karst Landscape: Case Study of Waste-filled Dolines

Valjavec

Ribeiro

Čarni

2017

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etation as the bioindicator of human�induced degradation in karst landscape: case study of waste�filled dolines Mismanagement practices, such as unsustainable waste disposal, created many degraded sites. In karst landscapes, old uncontrolled landfills are often located in dolines (sinkholes). Buried waste material in dolines represents degradation of landform, habitats and a potential danger of groundwater pollution. Buried waste provides heterogeneous ecological conditions on the surface, thus plant communities or individual plant species that developed on the surface of landfills can be used as a bioindicators of waste-filled doline sites and therefore indicators of land degradation. we aimed to discover the potential of vegetation to detect unknown locations of old dumpsites in suffusion dolines in Logaško polje (Dinaric Karst, Slovenia), either by plant communities or by plant species. we aimed to ascertain whether vegetation can indicate the dumping period by estimation of community succession stage. Locations and the age of waste-filled dolines (doline-dumps) were preliminary identified by a historical landscape study. Thus, we used time series of aerial photographs and digital photogrammetry tools for 3D modelling of historical terrain. Ecological evaluation was based on sampling the floristic composition of plots (5x5 m). we analysed ecological conditions by Ellenberg bioindicator values, structure by life history traits and naturalness by hemerobic levels of plants. we studied in detail 30 up to 50-years-old waste-filled dolines that are interspersed by dry and mesic grasslands. Ecological evaluation demonstrated that the main driver of ecological diversity at doline-dumps is the time at which the doline was backfilled and succession started. Annual and eutrophic communities dominate the youngest doline-dumps, middle aged doline-dumps are covered by ni-ACTA CARSOLOGICA 46/1-2017 96 MATEJA BREG VALJAVEC, DANIELA RIBEIRO & ANDRAž ČARNI trophilous perennial forbs and, finally, communities developed towards mesic grassland. we conclude that plant communities in combination with diagnostic plant species can be used as a bioindicators of doline-dumps in agricultural landscape of Logaško polje and can therefore indicate the sites of potential groundwater pollution sources but not the type of long-time buried waste.

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“…Biodiversity loss, habitat fragmentation, and land degradation characterised by soil erosion, lower fertility, and rocky desertification are the typical features of mountainous karst landscapes 1–3 . The karst landforms are widespread but with restricted distributions in the world 4, 5 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Karst tiankengs as refugia for indigenous tree flora amidst a degraded landscape in southwestern China

Tang

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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We conducted floristic and community analyses to compare the floristic composition, forest structure, taxonomic richness, and species diversity between two tiankeng (large doline, or sinkhole) habitats and two outside-tiankeng habitats of forest fragments in a degraded karst area in southwestern China. We found remarkably higher taxonomic richness in the tiankeng habitats than in the outside-tiankeng habitats at the species, generic, and familial levels. The inside-tiankeng habitats had higher floristic diversity but lower dominance. The remarkably higher uniqueness at all taxonomic levels and the much larger tree size in the two tiankeng habitats than in the outside-tiankeng habitats demonstrated the old-growth and isolated nature of the tiankeng flora. Plot-scale species richness, Shannon-Wiener index, Pielou’s evenness, and Berger-Parker dominance significantly differed across habitats. Heterogeneity in floristic composition at the species, generic, and familial levels was extremely significant across habitats. In pairwise comparisons, except for the Chuandong Tiankeng-Shenmu Tiankeng pair, all the pairs showed significant between-habitat heterogeneity in floristic composition. Our results suggest that as oases amidst the degraded karst landscape, tiankengs serve as modern refugia that preserve old-growth forest communities with their rich floristic diversity, and can provide a model for habitat conservation and forest restoration in that area.

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Analysis of human induced changes in a karst landscape — the filling of dolines in the Kras plateau, Slovenia

Cited by 43 publications

References 22 publications

Bryophyte diversity in karst sinkholes affected by different degrees of human disturbance

Bryophyte diversity in karst sinkholes affected by different degrees of human disturbance

Vegetation as the Bioindicator of Human-induced Degradation in Karst Landscape: Case Study of Waste-filled Dolines

Karst tiankengs as refugia for indigenous tree flora amidst a degraded landscape in southwestern China

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