Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
In the Campo Felice, in the central Apennines, the borehole data of Giraudi
et al.
(2010) suggest that five glacial advances respectively occurred during MIS 2, 3-4,
6, 10 and 14. This interesting dataset has shown that the glacial history of the Italian
Apennines is more complex than previously thought.
3.2.6 Dinaric Alps
Large areas of the Balkans were glaciated during the Pleistocene. Some of the
largest glaciers and ice caps formed in Montenegro, which is one of the most heavily
glaciated countries of the Mediterranean region. Large Pleistocene glaciers formed
in the Prokletije Mountains, on the border of Montenegro and Albania, where
glaciers extended over 35 km, forming U-shaped valleys, moraines and numerous
glacial lakes (Cvijic, 1913). However, Milivojevic
et al.
(2008) have questioned the
extent of ice cover suggested by Cvijic and argue that glaciers were more restricted
in size. For example, Milivojevic
et al.
argue that deposits bounding Lake Plav in
the northern Prokletije, Montenegro, are remnants of alluvial fans and not moraines
as previously thought.
Further west, on Mount Durmitor (2530 m asl), there is extensive evidence of
glaciation, and 18 glacial lakes are present in this area (Djurovic, 2009). An exten-
sive ice cap covered much of this area as well as neighbouring massifs, such as Sin-
jajevina, Kapa Moraca and Maganik to the south. In the latter two areas, the glacial
limits on the western slopes were traced by Liedtke (1962a). This major ice cap
glaciation occurred during the Middle Pleistocene (Hughes
et al.
, 2011a) and the
contiguous ice caps of central Montenegro covered an area greater than 1400 km
2
.
Moraines of this major glaciation occur at altitudes between 500 and 1000 m. Late
Pleistocene glaciation was significant but restricted to the higher valleys of the main
massifs (Figure 3.6).
Near the Adriatic coast on Mount Orjen (1895 m asl), glacial cirques and valleys
exploited older karstic forms to support extensive glaciers (Penck, 1900; Sawicki,
1911; Menkovic
et al.
, 2004; Hughes
et al.
, 2010). The extensive glaciation on
Mount Orjen (1895 m asl) was probably a function of very high precipitation, and
modern values here exceed 5000 mm (Magas, 2002). The largest, and oldest, glacia-
tion expanded over most of Orjen forming an ice cap that covered an area greater
than 150 km
2
. Nearby coastal mountains such as Lovcen (1749 m asl) were also
glaciated during the Pleistocene (Liedtke, 1962b). Again, the most extensive phase
of glaciations in these coastal mountains appears to have occurred during the Mid-
dle Pleistocene, whilst smaller valley and cirque glaciers formed during the last cold
stage of the Pleistocene.
Marjanac and Marjanac (2004) presented evidence for glaciation in the coastal
Dinaric Alps of Croatia. Significantly, Marjanac and Marjanac (2004) describe fea-
tures on some of the Croatian coast and islands in the Adriatic, which they argue
are glacial in origin. These include kame-terraces on the Krk and Pag islands to
the west of the Velebit Mountains, as well as glacial and periglacial deposits on the
