Response of ice caves to weather extremes in the southeastern Alps, Europe

Colucci, Renato R.; Fontana, Denise Cybis; Forte, Emanuele; Potleca, Michele; Guglielmin, Mauro

doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2016.02.017

Cited by 39 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…The combination of winter temperatures and precipitation regime is thought to be important in maintaining ice in caves [6]. Ice caves typically occur at lower elevations than do glaciers and concern exists that as the global climate continues to warm, these features, especially the ones in temperate latitudes, will be lost [2,7]. Some have suggested that the ice bodies could contain important climatic and other environmental records much as glacier ice does [2].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glaciochemistry of Cave Ice: Paradana and Snežna Caves, Slovenia

et al. 2019

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Cave ice samples collected within karstic terrain have major ion and nutrient concentrations showing that the ice originates from local precipitation modified by the addition of Ca2+ and HCO3− from the dissolution of the local bedrock. Isotopic profiles of Paradana Cave ice are similar to those described in other ice caves in central and eastern Europe, where the profiles are developed through the freezing of cave pool or “lake” waters from the top downward during the onset of the cold portion of the year. Stable isotope data suggest future studies may yield a long-term paleo-environmental record for this location.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glaciochemistry of Cave Ice: Paradana and Snežna Caves, Slovenia

et al. 2019

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“…The real distribution and size of ground ice in Alpine caves is still very uncertain, although recently in the southeastern Italian Alps 1100 ice caves have been reported. Here, they are generally located between 1500 and 2200 m and their distribution is well-correlated with MAAT and altitude, being significantly more frequent for MAAT lower than 2 °C and 5°C; therefore, they are placed within the periglacial domain characterized by high precipitations (Colucci et al, 2016b). In Slovenia, 551 ice caves have been reported by Mihevc (2008).…”

Section: Lia and Present-daymentioning

confidence: 73%

“…Instead ice caves are permafrost phenomena in carbonate massifs of the Balkan Peninsula which often exist at elevations where outside MAAT is well above 0 °C (Colucci et al, 2016b) owing to karstic topography which functions as cold air trap and thus promote the survival of permanent snow and ice. Majority of caves containing permanent frozen materials, the so-called cryo caves (sensu Colucci et al, 2016b), occur at elevations above 800-1000 m in the Dinaric Alps Kern et al, 2006b;Zupan Hajna, 2016) and mountains in Macedonia (Temovski, 2016), although some cryo caves in Slovenia were reported from lower altitudes (Mihevc, 2008). In the Dinaric karst of Slovenia about 100 cryo caves (Slovenian Cave Registry, 2014) and in the northern Velebit Mountain in Croatia cryo caves (Buzjak et al, 2016) were explored by speleologists.…”

Section: Present-daymentioning

confidence: 99%

Permafrost conditions in the Mediterranean region since the Last Glaciation

Oliva

Žebre

Guglielmin

et al. 2018

Earth-Science Reviews

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The relatively warm climate conditions prevailing today in the Mediterranean region limit cold geomorphological processes only to the highest mountain environments. However, climate variability during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene has led to significant spatio-temporal variations of the glacial and periglacial domain in these mountains, including permafrost conditions. Here, we examine the distribution and evolution of permafrost in the Mediterranean region considering five time periods: Last Glaciation, deglaciation, Holocene, Little Ice Age (LIA) and present-day. The distribution of inactive permafrost-derived features as well as sedimentary records indicates that the elevation limit of permafrost during the Last Glaciation was between 1000 m and even 2000 m lower than present. Permafrost was also widespread in non-glaciated slopes above the snowline forming rock glaciers and block streams, as well as meter-sized stone circles in relatively flat summit areas. As in most of the Northern Hemisphere, the onset of deglaciation in the Mediterranean region started around 19-20 ka. The ice-free terrain left by retreating glaciers was subject to paraglacial activity and intense periglacial processes under permafrost conditions. Many rock glaciers, protalus lobes and block streams formed in these recently deglaciated environments, though most of them became gradually inactive as temperatures kept rising, especially those at lower altitudes. Following the Younger Dryas glacial advance, the Early Holocene saw the last massive deglaciation in Mediterranean mountains accompanied by a progressive shift of permafrost conditions to higher elevations. It is unlikely that air temperatures recorded in Mediterranean mountains during the Holocene favoured the existence of widespread permafrost regimes, with the only exception of the highest massifs exceeding 2500-3000 m. LIA colder climate promoted a minor glacial advance and the spatial expansion of permafrost, with the development of new protalus lobes and rock glaciers in the highest massifs. Finally, post-LIA warming has led to glacial retreat/disappearance, enhanced paraglacial activity, shift of periglacial processes to higher elevations, degradation of alpine permafrost along with geoecological changes.

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“…The present cryosphere in the study area consists of 23 ice bodies, covering a total area of 0.358 km 2 (Colucci, 2016) and more than a thousand caves located above 1,000 m a.s.l., which host snow, firn, and ice deposits (Colucci, Fontana, Forte, Potleca, & Guglielmin, 2016a). On the other hand, no active rock glaciers are present in the study area nowadays although few of them present uncertain activity due to their geomorphological characteristics.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Geometry and paleo-ice content of rock glaciers in the southeastern Alps (NE Italy – NW Slovenia)

Boccali

Žebre

Colucci³

2019

Journal of Maps

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Rock glaciers in the southeastern Alps of Slovenia and Italy have been mapped in detail using high resolution digital elevation model and orthophotos, supported by field-based observations. A total of 52 rock glaciers with an area of 3.40 km 2 have been delineated on a rock glacier map, divided in 18 sections at a scale of 1:15,000. Several geometrical parameters of rock glaciers have been calculated and their activity degree has been inferred. 90% of rock glaciers have been classified as relict, while the rest are assumed to be of uncertain activity and might still contain some ice. The volumetric ice content and water volume equivalent of the studied rock glaciers for the period of their activity has been calculated to 0.055 ± 0.011 km 3 and 0.049 ± 0.010 km 3 , respectively, which is very close to the ice volume of glaciers reconstructed for this area during the little ice age to 0.069 km 3 .

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Response of ice caves to weather extremes in the southeastern Alps, Europe

Cited by 39 publications

References 21 publications

Glaciochemistry of Cave Ice: Paradana and Snežna Caves, Slovenia

Glaciochemistry of Cave Ice: Paradana and Snežna Caves, Slovenia

Permafrost conditions in the Mediterranean region since the Last Glaciation

Geometry and paleo-ice content of rock glaciers in the southeastern Alps (NE Italy – NW Slovenia)

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