Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of the Milna valley on the island of Vis (Central Adriatic) during the late Holocene

Abstract

This study provides a reconstruction of the 1.5 ka palaeoenvironmental evolution of the small, and presently dry, Milna valley on the island of Vis. Sediments from the valley were studied using multi-proxy approach, applying sedimentological, mineralogical, petrological, anthracological, malacological, 14 C and land cover analyses, in regard to climatic, vegetation, and hydrological changes. The mineral composition of the siliciclastic detritus from the Milna valley points to the Dinaride Ophiolite Zone in Bosnia as its dominant source of origin, eroded by the Neretva River, and deposited in the form of alluvial sediments in the Central Adriatic area. However, Cetina and Drin Rivers may have also contributed some of the sediments. Regional aeolian resedimentation of the material occurred during Pleistocene, which later accumulated and became preserved in the Milna valley. Beside the Dinaride Ophiolite Zone, part of the mineral composition is influenced by minerals from the Alpine region and by neutral to basic volcanism, probably of Italian origin.

Assessment of Remote Sensing Techniques Applicability for Beach Morphology Mapping: A Case Study of Hvar Island, Central Adriatic, Croatia

“…In the Northern Adriatic, their amplitudes are higher than in the rest of the Mediterranean [4,68], which, thus, could influence beach morphology [17,59]. In the Central Adriatic, they are much lower, with an average amplitude of 25 cm [29,[69][70][71], so they do not have an important effect on beach morphology. The influence of average tides on beach area measurements is tested on Lučišće beach (Figure 2, beach no.…”

“…However, other processes, such as anthropogenic impacts that reflect morphological changes, are also often studied. One of such widespread influences relates, e.g., to studies of land cover changes [25][26][27][28][29]. In addition, multispectral features are often used to study hazards, e.g., floods [30], or forest fires, e.g., as in Reference [31].…”

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“…Sedimentological analyses include measurement of granulometric composition (grain size distribution and mass fraction in the sample) and the shape of sediment grains (Frančišković-Bilinski et al, 2012). Geochemical analyses determine the chemical composition and properties of sediment grains, while organic particles (charcoal, wood debris) are separated for radiocarbon dating, which is used to determine the stratigraphy of sediment layers and to study the evolution of the river channel and valley (Faivre et al, 2019). For example, Keesstra et al (2005) studied the age and sequence of river terraces on the Dragonja River using the 14 C method and established the stages of aggradation of the river valley and channel incision.…”

“…Rhône, Provansal et al, 2014), for many rivers the oldest reliable data are from the second half of the 20 th century (Bertalan et al, 2019;Kiss and Blanka, 2012). When instrumental data are not available, inferences about hydrologic and climatic conditions are based on sedimentological analyses (Keesstra et al, 2005;Faivre et al, 2019).…”