This vast karst landscape of limestone plateaus and more
than 700 caves is home to the world's highest stalagmite.
The 21-kilometer Baradla-Domica cave stretches over the
Hungary-Slovakia border. The Gombasek cave is probably the more photographed,
with its impressive rock formations giving it the feel of a fairy tale city.
Drive 240 kilometers northeast of Budapest to the Aggteleki
National Park.
Brief Description :
The variety of formations and the fact that they are
concentrated in a restricted area means that the 712 caves currently identified
make up a typical temperate-zone karstic system. Because they display an extremely
rare combination of tropical and glacial climatic effects, they make it
possible to study geological history over tens of millions of years.
Long Description :
The Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst lie over a
total area of 55,800 ha and topographically comprise limestone plateaus
dissected by deep river valleys. The territory is characterized by a fully
developed karst landscape, of which dolines are the most typical surface
landform. These have developed through solution and are, on average, 100 m wide
and 20 m deep. Other surface phenomena include sinkholes and karren fields.
This is the most extensively explored karst area in Europe, and a total of 712
caves have so far been identified. Many of the younger caves which have formed
at the plateau edges, such as Krasnchorska and Gombasecka, occur on several
levels and contain dripstone decorations. The most notable of these is the
Baradla-Domica cave system which is 21 km long and connects Hungary with
Slovakia. These caves are also noted for having the world's highest stalagmite,
aragonite and sinter formations and an ice filled abyss, which considering the
territory's height above sea level, is a unique phenomenon for central Europe.
All these karst landforms are the result of long-term geomorphologic processes
typical of this temperate climatic zone.
Hydrological conditions are characterized by a lack of
surface streams, except between mountain basins, and the complex circulation of
underground water. The flora is representative of both Pannonian and Carpathian
elements. A unique biotope arises where two floral sectors overlap, and
consequently many rare endemics can be found throughout the territory.
Approximately 70% of the territory consists of deciduous woodland dominated by
hornbeam and oak.
The fauna includes wolf, lynx, red deer, roe deer, wild
boar, wild cat and badger. Nesting bird species include: rock bunting, black
stork, corncrake, imperial eagle, dipper, Ural owl, saker falcon, short-toed
eagle, honey buzzard. Of particular scientific interest are the cave and
subterranean water fauna. Beetles and other insects are abundant. Cave worms
are often found in sand and clay deposits whereas molluscs are associated with
underground streams, and crustaceans occur including an endemic species of
primitive carb. A total of 21 bat species have been identified in the Slovak
Karst.
The caves themselves are of moderate extent and are not as
long, deep or decorated as are other world caves. A significant aspect of the
area is that it has undergone a great deal of fossilization and later
exhumation of landscape features and subsurface groundwater routes. In other
words, many karst features, after having formed, were buried by later sediment
and then later reactivated or exhumed by erosional removal of the sediment. The
resulting karst features contain a great deal of evidence pertaining to the
geological history of the last several millions of years. The present karst
landscape has been developing intermittently since the late Cretaceous period.
There is one sizeable settlement (Silica) and two hamlets
within the Slovak protected area and two villages (Aggtelek and Josvaf with
approximately 1,100 inhabitants) inside the Aggtelek National Park's
boundaries. There is a serious pollution problem which is contaminating cave
waters and threatening the park's ecosystem. This arises from the increased use
of pesticides and fertilizers in the surrounding areas and from tourist's
vehicles and nearby industry.
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