Slovak Karst
Encyclopedia
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
s of the Slovenské rudohorie Mountains in the Carpathians
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
in southern Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
. It consists of a complex of huge karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
plains and plateaus. Since 1973 it was a protected landscape area. On 1 March 2002 Slovak Karst National Park
Slovak Karst National Park
Slovak Karst National Park is a national park in the Slovak Karst mountain range in South East Slovakia...
was declared. It is also a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
Biosphere reserve
The Man and the Biosphere Programme of UNESCO was established in 1971 to promote interdisciplinary approaches to management, research and education in ecosystem conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.-Development:...
and part of it forms UNESCO World Heritage site Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst
Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst
The Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst is a UNESCO World Heritage site consisting of 712 caves spread out over a total area of 55,800 ha along the border of Hungary and Slovakia.-Background:This UNESCO World Heritage site includes seven components...
.
Characteristics
The highest peak is Jelení vrch at 947 m AMSL. Important rivers are the SlanáSlaná
Slaná can refer to:* Sajó river - Slaná is its Slovak name* Slaná, a village in the Czech Republic...
(Sajó), the Štítnik
Štítnik
Štítnik is a village and municipality in the Rožňava District in the Košice Region of middle-eastern Slovakia.-History:In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1243 by King Bela IV of Hungary, that was in a letter....
and the Turňa
Turna
Torna is the name of a historic administrative county of the Kingdom of Hungary...
. The Slovak Karst lies in the north temperate zone and has a continental climate with four distinct seasons. The area is composed of several layers of Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
and dolomite
Dolomite
Dolomite is a carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate CaMg2. The term is also used to describe the sedimentary carbonate rock dolostone....
, beneath which there is non-permeable sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, limestone and slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
. The plains are covered by oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
-hornbeam
Hornbeam
Hornbeams are relatively small hardwood trees in the genus Carpinus . Though some botanists grouped them with the hazels and hop-hornbeams in a segregate family, Corylaceae, modern botanists place the hornbeams in the birch subfamily Coryloideae...
forests, the hills by oak forests and the karst pits by spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
forests. Beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
forests are in the northern parts.
- Čertova diera (literally Devil's Hole; depth: 186 m)
- Brázda (181 m)
- Malá železná priepasť (Little Iron Abyss; 142 m)
- Diviačia priepasť (Boar Abyss; 122 m)
Some of the abysses are collapsed, especially the Silická ľadnica (Silica Ice Abyss; 110 m)
The region is best known for its many cave
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
s, out of which the Domica
Domica
Domica is the biggest cave in the Slovak Karst in southern Slovakia, Rožňava District. It is a part of the cave complex that continues into the cave Baradla in Hungary. It was discovered in 1926 by Ján Majko. Since 1932, of the are open to public...
Cave, Ochtinská Aragonite Cave
Ochtinská Aragonite Cave
Ochtinská Aragonite Cave is a unique aragonite cave situated in southern Slovakia, near Rožňava. Although only 300 m long, it is famous for its rare aragonite filling. There are only three aragonite caves discovered in the world so far. In the so-called Milky Way Hall, the main attraction of the...
(Ochtinská aragonitová jaskyňa), Gombasek Cave
Gombasek Cave
Gombasek Cave or Gombasecká jaskyňa and Gombaszögi-barlang is a stalactite and stalagmite cave in the Slovak Karst, Slovakia. It is named after the settlement of Gombasek, which belongs to the village of Slavec. It is located in the Slovak Karst National Park, in the Slaná river valley,...
(Gombasecká jaskyňa) and Jasovská Cave
Jasovská Cave
Jasovská Cave is a stalactite cave in the Slovak Karst in Slovakia. It is located near the village of Jasov, around 25 km from Košice.The cave was partly opened for the public in 1846, making it the oldest publicly accessible cave in Slovakia. The lower parts of the cave were discovered in 1922 to...
(Jasovská jaskyňa) are open to the public. Other noteworthy caves are Krásnohorská Cave
Krásnohorská Cave
Krásnohorská Cave is a karst cave situated at the northern foot of the Silická planina Plain, in the Slovak Karst, 6.5 km southeast of Rožňava, in Slovakia...
(Krásnohorská jaskyňa) and Hrušovská Cave (Hrušovská jaskyňa).
The region also includes karst lakes. The largest lake is Jašteričie jazero (literally Lizard Lake), "Gyükerréti-tó" in Hungarian.
The Slovak Karst also features rare plants, for example:
- Erythronium dens-canisErythronium dens-canisErythronium dens-canis is a small herbaceous flowering plant in the Liliaceae, native to Europe, where it is the only naturally occurring species....
(a TertiaryTertiaryThe Tertiary is a deprecated term for a geologic period 65 million to 2.6 million years ago. The Tertiary covered the time span between the superseded Secondary period and the Quaternary...
relict) - Onosma tornensis (endemic)
- Sesleria heuflerianaSesleria heuflerianaSesleria heufleriana is a species of perennial grass in the Poaceae family, native to central, southeastern, and eastern Europe and the Caucasus. Culms are erect, ranging from 30–70 cm long; leaf-blades are conduplicate or convolute, and 20–35 cm long by 2–3 mm wide.- References :* *...
(endemic) - Dianthus lumnitzerii (endemic)
and rare animals, for example:
- Eastern Imperial EagleEastern Imperial EagleThe Eastern Imperial Eagle is a large species of bird of prey that breeds from southeastern Europe to central Asia. Most populations are migratory and winter in northeastern Africa, and southern and eastern Asia. The Spanish Imperial Eagle, found in Spain and Portugal, was formerly lumped with...
(Aquila heliaca) - Short-toed EagleShort-toed EagleThe Short-toed Snake Eagle also known as Short-toed Eagle, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers.-Range and habitat:...
(Circaetus gallicus) - Lesser KestrelLesser KestrelThe Lesser Kestrel is a small falcon. This species breeds from the Mediterranean across southern central Asia to China and Mongolia. It is a summer migrant, wintering in Africa and Pakistan and sometimes even to India and Iraq. It is rare north of its breeding range, and declining in its European...
(Falco naumanni)
Subdivision
Parts (from the west to the east):- Jelšavský kras (literally Jelšava Karst)
- Koniarska planina (Koniarska Plain)
- Plešivská planina (Plešivská Plain)
- Silická planina (Silická Plain)
- Turnianska planina (Turnianska Plain); see also TurňaTurnaTorna is the name of a historic administrative county of the Kingdom of Hungary...
- Horný vrch (Upper Mountain)
- Dolný vrch (Lower Mountain)
- Zádielska planina (Zádielska Plain)
- Jasovská planina (Jasovská Plain)
See also
- Slovak Karst National ParkSlovak Karst National ParkSlovak Karst National Park is a national park in the Slovak Karst mountain range in South East Slovakia...
- Aggtelek National ParkAggtelek National ParkAggtelek National Park is a national park in Northern Hungary, in the Aggtelek Karst region. It was founded in 1985. It contains 198.92 km² . It has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage since 1995...