Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3

Articles

A record of climate changes over the past 200 years in slope morphodynamics and the cryosphere of the Tatra and Karkonosze Mountains

Stanisław Kędzia

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 353-376 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.1

Further information

Abstract Climate change has a huge impact on many forms of life and processes occurring on Earth. As high mountains have emerged as particularly sensitive to climate change, the Tatras, have long been a site for research on climate change and its impact on the environment. Debris flows are among the most spectacular hydrometeorological and geomorphological events occurring in high mountains, and given the long-term permafrost and large number of multiannual snow patches occurring in the Tatras, as well as the impact these exert on slope morphodynamics, it was also decided to examine the impact of climate change on selected elements of the cryosphere here. Equally, although the Karkonosze may not be counted as high mountains, but are at best intermediate between these and mountains of medium height, research of the same kind as in the Tatras has nevertheless been pursued at locations within this range. Lichenometric dating shows that the period with the greatest intensity of slope modelling in the two mountain ranges was the so-called “Little Ice Age”, the end of which is similar in the Karkonosze to in the Tatras. In both ranges, the 1930s and 1940s brought an upsurge in debris flows. Another phase of increased frequency of debris flows in the Tatras generally began in the 1970s and has continued through to the present day, while the analogous phenomenon in the Karkonosze Mountains began some 10-20 years later. Analysis of the intensity and duration of precipitation indicates that, in both the Tatra Mountains and the Karkonosze, daily precipitation totals are much less significant for the initiation of debris flows than the intensity of precipitation at given times. In the Tatras, it is sufficient for heavy precipitation of more than 1 mm/min to persist for at least 15 minutes, for debris flows to begin to occur. In the case of the Karkonosze, the duration of such heavy-rainfall events is slightly longer, with the presently-available (still scant) data suggesting 30 minutes is siffucient. The thickness of the cones analysed by GPR sounding in the Tatra Mountains is at least twice as great as that of the cones present at Mały Staw in the Karkonosze Mountains. This difference mainly reflects the size and shape of the sediment supply area and the type and dynamics of the morphogenetic processes providing the material from which the cones are formed. The Karkonosze Mountains currently lack any multiannual snow patches, though it seems very likely that 80+ years ago (at the end of the “Little Ice Age”), snow did cover parts of these mountains for almost the whole year. Existing debris glaciers in the Tatra Mountains, like the largest such glacier in the Karkonosze, displayed no activity during the “Little Ice Age”, despite the probable presence of permafrost in some of the Tatra rock glaciers. Despite the climatic differences between the Tatra and Karkonosze Mountains (mainly related to altitude and geographical location), a high degree of concordance is to be noted in the course of changes in morphogenetic processes discussed in this paper. These in turn relate to the latitudinal teleconnection phenonenon found by both climatologists and dendrochronologists. The impact of climate change on the activity of debris flows and the response on the part of snow patches/ glacierettes in the Tatra Mountains and the Karkonosze Mountains is seen to be similar to the impact and change reported in the Alps.

Keywords: Tatry, Karkonosze, kriosfera, spływy gruzowe

Stanisław Kędzia [kedzia@zg.pan.krakow.pl], Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization Polish Academy of Sciences, Św. Jana 22, 31-018 Kraków, Poland

Citation

APA: Kędzia, S. (2017). Zapis zmian klimatu w ostatnich 200 latach w morfodynamice stoków oraz kriosferze Tatr i Karkonoszy. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 353-376. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.1
MLA: Kędzia, Stanisław. "Zapis zmian klimatu w ostatnich 200 latach w morfodynamice stoków oraz kriosferze Tatr i Karkonoszy". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 353-376. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.1
Chicago: Kędzia, Stanisław. "Zapis zmian klimatu w ostatnich 200 latach w morfodynamice stoków oraz kriosferze Tatr i Karkonoszy". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 353-376. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.1
Harvard: Kędzia, S. 2017. "Zapis zmian klimatu w ostatnich 200 latach w morfodynamice stoków oraz kriosferze Tatr i Karkonoszy". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 353-376. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.1

Thermal-winter regions in Poland

Małgorzata Czarnecka, Jadwiga Nidzgorska-Lencewicz

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 377-389 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.2

Further information

Abstract The aim of the study presented here was to identify distinct Polish regions from the point of view of thermal winter, and in line with two developed criteria, i.e. average monthly and daily values for air temperature. The research in question was based on data series for the November-April periods in the years 1960/61–2014/15 inclusive, as obtained from 36 weather stations of the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management (IMGW). Start and end dates of thermal winter, defined as the period with mean daily temperatures below 0°C, were identified by reference to mean monthly values for air temperature calculated with the commonly-used calculation by Gumiński. For the sake of simplicity, dates and durations of thermal winters calculated by reference to mean daily temperature values are referred to simply in terms of their being “the winter period”. The beginning of such a winter period is thus marked by the first (and the end by the last) occurrence of at least a three-day series of mean daily air temperature below 0°C. Such characterisations of thermal winters and winter periods for the different stations (relating to start and end dates, durations and durational coefficients of variability) were inputted into cluster analysis, with the result that three general regions of Poland featuring similar patterns for negative air temperature were identifi ed. In the identified western region, the period of negative air temperature is the shortest and is also characterised by the highest inter-annual variability, particularly when it comes to winter days in its north-western sub-region. By contrast, the longest thermal winter period, along with the lowest inter-annual variability is found to characterize the so-called eastern region. In comparison with the western, this region differs particularly significantly in terms of mean air temperature values, given that winter lasts almost twice as long there, and is recorded almost every year. The western region displays the highest inter-annual variability where features characteristic for the occurrence of negative temperature are concerned, while the eastern region shows the lowest variability. Over the analysed period, there was no significant linear trend noted for the start and end dates of both thermal winter and the winter period. However, it was possible to note a tendency for thermal winters in the central and eastern regions of Poland to shorten. Only in the eastern region was it possible to note a decrease in the frequency of occurrence of winter days. In the central region, the durations of thermal winter periods determined using mean monthly air temperatures are indeed the same as the actual numbers of days with 24-hour air temperatures below 0°C in an average multi-annual period. In contrast, in the western region the true length of the thermal winter is underrepresented by 7 days (i.e. shorter), while in in the eastern region it is overrepresented by 6 days (i.e. longer). However, over the analysed 55-year period, almost every region reported instances of thermal winters being overrepresented as well as underrepresented in terms of duration, with the deviation in many seasons being in the 20-40–day range. In the western region, durations of thermal winters were seen to be underrepresented twice as frequently, when comparisons with actual numbers of winter days were made, while in the eastern region there was overrepresentation. Mean monthly air temperature, as the criterion adopted most typically in identifying thermal winters in Poland, does offer a best reflection of the durations of winters in the central region. In contrast, in the cases of the western and eastern region identified, mean 24-hour air temperatures would seem better suited to determining thermal winters.

Keywords: ujemna temperatura powietrza, początek, koniec i długość zimy, analiza skupień, trend

Małgorzata Czarnecka, West Pomeranian University of Technology Department of Meteorology and Climatology Papieża Pawła VI 3A, 71-459 Szczecin: Poland
Jadwiga Nidzgorska-Lencewicz, West Pomeranian University of Technology Department of Meteorology and Climatology Papieża Pawła VI 3A, 71-459 Szczecin: Poland

Citation

APA: Czarnecka, M., & Nidzgorska-Lencewicz, J. (2017). Regiony termicznej zimy w Polsce. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 377-389. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.2
MLA: Czarnecka, Małgorzata, and Nidzgorska-Lencewicz, Jadwiga. "Regiony termicznej zimy w Polsce". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 377-389. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.2
Chicago: Czarnecka, Małgorzata, and Nidzgorska-Lencewicz, Jadwiga. "Regiony termicznej zimy w Polsce". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 377-389. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.2
Harvard: Czarnecka, M., & Nidzgorska-Lencewicz, J. 2017. "Regiony termicznej zimy w Polsce". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 377-389. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.2

Transformation of water and sediment properties along the longitudinal profile of the Upper Volga Cascade Reservoirs

Piotr Gierszewski, Viktor V. Zakonnov, Michał Kaszubski, Jarosław Kordowski

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 391-412 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.3

Further information

Abstract The operation of dams is the key cause of river discontinuity, with reduced flow velocity towards dams reflected in gradual change in the physicochemical properties of water, the concentration and characteristics of suspension matter, and the properties of bottom sediments. In the case of dam reservoirs operating in a cascade system, the most major transformations of river-water abiotic and biotic characteristics take place in the first reservoir of the cascade, with properties of the aqueous environment in consecutive bodies of water then affected markedly. Detailed here, research conducted in the Upper Volga Reservoirs in Russia sought to assess the size and nature of changes in the physicochemical properties of water and in characteristics of the suspended material and bottom sediments that take place along the longitudinal profile of this Cascade of reservoirs. Results were then used to determine the relationships pertaining between the separate reservoirs of the Cascade, and to recognise the capacity for the typical longitudinal zonation to be reproduced in consecutive reservoirs along the cascade. The reservoirs of the upper part of the Volga Cascade are located in an area of limited environmental contrast. In such a situation, variability to the physicochemical properties of water and characteristics of the bottom sediments along the longitudinal profile are conditioned primarily by hydrological factors. The study showed that the functioning of the reservoirs as part of a cascade system did not result in the disappearance of the characteristic three-section aquatic environment, expressed by the presence of riverine, transitional and lacustrine zones. The equivalent of the riverine zones in the second and subsequent reservoirs are backflow zones, which extend to the dam of the upstream reservoir. The high-energy, erosive force of water downstream from dams denotes hydrodynamic conditions similar to those in the upper, riverine sections of reservoirs operating independently. The presented three-section model for the reservoirs was preserved mainly in terms of diversified bottom-sediment properties. A regularity detected entailed decreasing mean grain size towards the dam, and a parallel increase in OM content in the sediment. A significant impact on bottom–sediment properties is also exerted by the velocity and direction of currents, by depth and bottom morphology, and by the properties of the clastic material supplied to the reservoir from various sources. Only to a lesser extent is the three-section model of the aquatic environment in reservoirs evident in physicochemical properties of the water. However, the intense turbulence present in water below dams ensures such strong mixing that vertical gradients in water temperature are realigned, and oxygenation of bottom layers of water improved. In this sense, these particular sections of reservoirs are similar to the riverine zones of reservoirs operating independently. The presence of less-mineralised water in the lower, deepest sections of the reservoirs and below dams indicates a hydrochemical connection between the consecutive bodies of water. Furthermore, a significant influence on changes in the course of analysed parameters must be ascribed to local conditions, with the impacts of tributaries, but also other local factors like depth, the presence of erosional banks and intensity of shipping, proving just as important as causes of disturbance to the river continuum as dams.

Keywords: kaskada zbiorników zaporowych, nieciąłość rzeki, rumowisko rzeczne, górna Wołga, Rosja

Piotr Gierszewski [piotr.gierszewski@geopan.torun.pl], Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization Polish Academy of Sciences, Kopernika 19, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
Jarosław Kordowski [jaroslaw.kordowski@geopan.torun.pl], Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization Polish Academy of Sciences, Kopernika 19, 87-100 Toruń, Poland

Citation

APA: Gierszewski, P., Zakonnov, V., Kaszubski, M., & Kordowski, J. (2017). Transformacja właściwości wody i osadów w profilu podłużnym zbiorników zaporowych Kaskady Górnej Wołgi*. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 391-412. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.3
MLA: Gierszewski, Piotr, et al. "Transformacja właściwości wody i osadów w profilu podłużnym zbiorników zaporowych Kaskady Górnej Wołgi*". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 391-412. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.3
Chicago: Gierszewski, Piotr, Zakonnov, Viktor V., Kaszubski, Michał, and Kordowski, Jarosław. "Transformacja właściwości wody i osadów w profilu podłużnym zbiorników zaporowych Kaskady Górnej Wołgi*". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 391-412. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.3
Harvard: Gierszewski, P., Zakonnov, V., Kaszubski, M., & Kordowski, J. 2017. "Transformacja właściwości wody i osadów w profilu podłużnym zbiorników zaporowych Kaskady Górnej Wołgi*". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 391-412. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.3

Multiannual dynamics of characteristic runoff from selected Polish river catchments in the light of changes of the NAO index

Beata Stanisławczyk

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 413-428 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.4

Further information

Abstract The work detailed here concerns an analysis of characteristic (i.e. Wq maximum, Sq – mean and Nq – minimum) specific runoff from selected river catchments in Poland as set against the recorded intensity of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) as quantified using Hurrell’s NAO index. Analysis was based around daily river discharges at water–gauges located along 40 rivers in numerous different regions of Poland (Fig. 2), and deemed to be representative of various kinds of hydrological regime. The data spanned the 1951-2010 period, though time series for particular river catchments were in fact in the 48- to 60-year range. The data in question were made subject to calculations of coefficients for the correlation between simultaneous series describing characteristic specific river runoffs and values of Hurrell’s NAO index. However, assessment also accounted for inertia of specific river runoff, by using cross-correlation coefficients, and most especially the relationship between studied specific river runoff and values for the NAO index recorded in the preceding year. The statistical significances of correlation and cross–correlation coefficient values were assessed using the Student t test ( = 0.05). The correlation between values for the Hurrell index and weighted average specific runoff from Poland was also analysed. A key research finding was that the largest number of statistically-significant correlation coefficients (19 and 14 respectively) were obtained when Hurrell’s NAO index was set against maximum or mean specific river runoffs (Fig. 4). In contrast, the NAO is shown to have a rather minor impact on minimum specific river runoff in Poland (with significance achieved for data from just 3 catchments). Asynchronicity to the relationship between the NAO and characteristic runoff in Poland was also observed, though it needs stressing that the NAO primarily influences specific river runoff in southern Poland, with only a more minor influence on runoff in the lowland and lakeland regions of central and northern Poland. The calculated cross–correlation method largely failed to reveal inertia of the analysed characteristic specific river runoff, with no statistically significant correlation being obtained between Hurrell index values and weighted average specific runoff from Poland. Equally, several-year periods with an asynchronous relationship between the NAO and weighted average specific runoff from Poland were to be noted between 1960 and 2010.

Keywords: Oscylacja Północnoatlantycka, charakterystyczne odpływy jednostkowe, Polska

Citation

APA: Stanisławczyk, B. (2017). Wieloletnia dynamika odpływów charakterystycznych z wybranych zlewni Polski w świetle zmian indeksu NAO. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 413-428. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.4
MLA: Stanisławczyk, Beata. "Wieloletnia dynamika odpływów charakterystycznych z wybranych zlewni Polski w świetle zmian indeksu NAO". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 413-428. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.4
Chicago: Stanisławczyk, Beata. "Wieloletnia dynamika odpływów charakterystycznych z wybranych zlewni Polski w świetle zmian indeksu NAO". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 413-428. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.4
Harvard: Stanisławczyk, B. 2017. "Wieloletnia dynamika odpływów charakterystycznych z wybranych zlewni Polski w świetle zmian indeksu NAO". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 413-428. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.4

Comparison of flows of defined probabilities of occurrence calculated in an urban catchment using SWMM and SBUH models

Mariusz Barszcz

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 429-449 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.5

Further information

Abstract This paper details work to estimate flows of defined probabilities of occurrence in the catchment of Warsaw’s Służewiecki Stream, using the dynamic model known as the SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) and the conceptual model called the SBUH (Santa Barbara Urban Hydrograph). The comparability of flows calculated using the two different types of model was assessed in relation to four cross-sections. Relatively good agreement was only obtained for two sub-catchments covering relatively small areas. The SWMM model was used to calculate flows in cross-sections closing off particular sub-catchments, with account taken of transformation in open and closed channels, reduction by the presence of bodies of water and culverts (“reduced flows”) and surface runoff (“potential flows”). The values of these flows determined using the two methods proved similar in the two aforementioned sub-catchments characterised by small areas. Values for time of concentration were calculated using the SWMM model for individual events of defined probabilities of occurrence in the four sub-catchments, and it is likewise on this that the parameter of the routing constant Kr in the SBUH model depends. Comparisons with values relating to critical storm duration, as determined using the two models, were then made. These values in most cases indicated shorter periods than those relating to time of concentration. Results verifying the above models in a small urban catchment in Baltimore (USA) are also presented.

Keywords: zlewnia miejska, przepływy, model SBUH, model SWMM, czas koncentracji, czas krytyczny opadu

Citation

APA: Barszcz, M. (2017). Porównanie przepływów o określonym prawdopodobieństwie wystąpienia obliczonych w zlewni miejskiej za pomocą modeli SWMM i SBUH. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 429-449. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.5
MLA: Barszcz, Mariusz. "Porównanie przepływów o określonym prawdopodobieństwie wystąpienia obliczonych w zlewni miejskiej za pomocą modeli SWMM i SBUH". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 429-449. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.5
Chicago: Barszcz, Mariusz. "Porównanie przepływów o określonym prawdopodobieństwie wystąpienia obliczonych w zlewni miejskiej za pomocą modeli SWMM i SBUH". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 429-449. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.5
Harvard: Barszcz, M. 2017. "Porównanie przepływów o określonym prawdopodobieństwie wystąpienia obliczonych w zlewni miejskiej za pomocą modeli SWMM i SBUH". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 429-449. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.5

The impact of human activities on hydrographic changes in selected wetlands

Magda Sikora, Roman Cieśliński

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 451-466 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.6

Further information

Abstract The aim of the work described here has been to determine the long-term impact of human activities on wetlands. Consideration has been given to such aspects as the development of the drainage network, peat extraction and restoration. The study selected two Nature Reserve wetlands, i.e. the Pobłockie Bog and Kurze Grzędy, both located in the Baltic Sea basin in northern Poland. Both areas were subject to a search for relevant literature and sources in the form of historical maps from the last century, as well as contemporary topographic and thematic maps. Supplementary fieldwork was also carried out (in 2013), as regards the verification of the existing hydrographic and hydraulic engineering network in the area under investigation. The greatest past impact on the analysed wetlands was exerted by a network of ditches and irrigation channels. This revision of the hydrographic network caused departures from the natural water cycle, as drainage became excessive in the face of the loss of the natural drainage system. The consequence was drying and rotting of bog surfaces, with the replacement of original plant species with those of differing requirements as regards hydrological regimes. Attempts to restore more natural water relations to the bogs have been made recently, with appropriate treatment raising the level of groundwater, in order to encourage improved functioning. A measurable effect of this is a reduced number of ditches and irrigation channels, for example from 13.3 to 1.48 km since 2000 in the case of Pobłockie Bog. Hydrographic change associated with drainage of peat deposits is considered the most important reason for changes in swamp habitats, and notably their vegetation. Some plant species have been replaced by others, with certain plant species requiring damp conditions (notably cross-leaved heath Erica tetralix) disappearing altogether with the lowering of the water table. Long-term drainage and the construction of new drainage ditches have led to the encroachment of bog woodland on the originally treeless bog. The effect is a loss of large bog areas, replaced by forest communities. The analysed bogs present clearly visible changes in the hydrographic network. Over the years the formerly waterlogged area has been transformed by human activity from a naturally treeless wetland to a desiccated region with only a small amount of water. The area was drained so that land for agriculture could be acquired, but the area was also used as a source of peat. With the passage of time, human overexploitation of the area ceased, and the approach taken to wetlands today is entirely different from that in place a few decades ago. The uniqueness of these kinds of wetlands has come to be appreciated, and an attempt has thus been made to restore a more natural appearance and function to the areas under study, among others. The first effects of the attempts to repair the environment in the area can now be seen in increasing soil moisture, a shallower water table, and an increased area with permanently visible standing water. Such a rapid pace of change in water conditions has been achieved, not only through human activity, but also by way of a natural factor that is the activity of beavers (Castor fiber).

Keywords: mokradła, torfowiska, obieg wody, sieć hydrograficzna, rowy melioracyjne, drenaż

Roman Cieśliński [georc@univ.gda.pl], Uniwersytet Gdański, Wydział Oceanografii i Geografii

Citation

APA: Sikora, M., & Cieśliński, R. (2017). Wpływ działalności człowieka na zmiany hydrograficzne wybranych mokradeł. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 451-466. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.6
MLA: Sikora, Magda, and Cieśliński, Roman. "Wpływ działalności człowieka na zmiany hydrograficzne wybranych mokradeł". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 451-466. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.6
Chicago: Sikora, Magda, and Cieśliński, Roman. "Wpływ działalności człowieka na zmiany hydrograficzne wybranych mokradeł". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 451-466. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.6
Harvard: Sikora, M., & Cieśliński, R. 2017. "Wpływ działalności człowieka na zmiany hydrograficzne wybranych mokradeł". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 451-466. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.6

Contemporary adaptation of anthropogenically-transformed river valleys by European beavers Castor fiber (examples from Poland’s Opole Plain and Woźniki-Wieluń Upland)

Maria Fajer, Ireneusz Malik, Jan Maciej Waga, Małgorzata Wistuba, Beata Woskowicz-Ślęzak

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 467-489 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.7

Further information

Abstract

Many of Poland’s valleys resemble those of the Mała Panew and Liswarta (and their tributaries) in featuring the remains of old hydrotechnical infrastructure formerly used by gristmills, steel plants and sawmills. As the importance of water as their main source of energy declined, such earlier industrial plants were gradually closed down, with a steady process of deterioration of hydrotechnical infrastructure then set in train. Beavers were reintroduced into the catchments of the Mała Panew and Liswarta in the 1990s, with the rodents immediately commencing with the adaptation of anthropogenically-transformed habitats to better meet their needs. Against this background, research was conducted to determine: • the number of beaver sites in the river valleys in question, and especially the number within or near disused items of hydrotechnical infrastructure, • the ways in which beavers have “managed“ the infrastructural items in question, • the impact beavers’ activities have had on the environment in the valleys studied. The locations and functions of old items of hydrotechnical infrastructure were determined by reference to archival maps. To assess beavers’ activities, 6 sections of watercourse of lengths 0.5-7 km were selected, with locations of beaver dams and ponds, as well as other traces of activity by the animals, documented and described. With a view to findings being summarized, distinctions were drawn between various methods of adaptation of former hydrotechnical objects by beavers , i.e. 1 – dams built in the channels of regulated rivers, 2 – dams built in culverts, 3 – former millrace/water channels (used by gristmills or ironworks) occupied and adapted, 4 – banks of retention ponds occupied, 5 – waters in river channels dammed and basins of old ponds flooded, 6 – banks of ponds serving fire-fighting purposes occupied, 7 – former pond dams restored. Beavers can adapt successfully to – and also themselves adapt – anthropogenically-transformed environments in river valleys. In this regard, the rodents were found to be more eager to occupy the tributaries of the Mała Panew and Liswarta than the rivers themselves. The valleys offer suitable conditions for beavers, given channels that are shallow (of 0.3-0.6 m), slightly sloping (2.2-6.7 m/km), with sandy or sandy-sludgy bottoms, as well as access to deciduous trees growing nearby. Along the Mała Panew and Liswarta themselves, beavers make use of side channels and millraces. Most numerous traces of beavers’ activity were to be observed along forested stretches of the Leńca and Olszynka Valleys, which are found to have been transformed by beavers along 28-35% of their lengths. The animals made instinctive use of relic items of hydrotechnical infrastructure, with an interesting case involving the “restoration” by beavers of old embankments of anthropogenic ponds on the Rów Kokocki and the Leńca. Above beaver ponds (on the Rów Kokocki) or between ponds (on the Olszynka and Leńca), reduced channel slope and increased channel sinuosity contribute to the creation of side channels. Along these sections, transport channels made by beavers are vulnerable to avulsion and the emergence of multi-channel sections of watercourses.

Keywords: bobry, tamy bobrowe, dawne obiekty hydrotechniczne, Mała Panew, Liswarta

Ireneusz Malik, University of Silesia , Earth Sciences Faculty, ul Będzińska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland

Citation

APA: Fajer, M., Malik, I., Waga, J., Wistuba, M., & Woskowicz-Ślęzak, B. (2017). Współczesne wykorzystanie przez bobra europejskiego Castor fiber antropogenicznie przekształconych dolin rzecznych (przykłady z Równiny Opolskiej i Wyżyny Woźnicko-Wieluńskiej). Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 467-489. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.7
MLA: Fajer, Maria, et al. "Współczesne wykorzystanie przez bobra europejskiego Castor fiber antropogenicznie przekształconych dolin rzecznych (przykłady z Równiny Opolskiej i Wyżyny Woźnicko-Wieluńskiej)". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 467-489. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.7
Chicago: Fajer, Maria, Malik, Ireneusz, Waga, Jan Maciej, Wistuba, Małgorzata, and Woskowicz-Ślęzak, Beata. "Współczesne wykorzystanie przez bobra europejskiego Castor fiber antropogenicznie przekształconych dolin rzecznych (przykłady z Równiny Opolskiej i Wyżyny Woźnicko-Wieluńskiej)". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 467-489. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.7
Harvard: Fajer, M., Malik, I., Waga, J., Wistuba, M., & Woskowicz-Ślęzak, B. 2017. "Współczesne wykorzystanie przez bobra europejskiego Castor fiber antropogenicznie przekształconych dolin rzecznych (przykłady z Równiny Opolskiej i Wyżyny Woźnicko-Wieluńskiej)". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 467-489. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.7

A general review of research into waters’ thermal structure and lake ice cover in the Polish Tatra Mountains

Mirosław Szumny

Przegląd Geograficzny (2017) tom 89, zeszyt 3, pp. 491-512 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.8

Further information

Abstract The article presents a review of research into the thermal structure and ice cover characterising lakes in Poland’s Tatra Mountains, on the basis of two centuries of scientific publications appearing up to 2015. The literature review allowed for the identification of five periods in which research was of differing intensities and quality. The first research carried out in the 19th century is seen to be of limited scientific value, mostly being limited to one-off measurements of morphometry and thermal conditions in the Tatra Mountain lakes. Only the research done by L. Birkenmayer can be regarded as well-planned, detailed and continuous in nature. By contrast, measurements made in the 20th century (mainly on the basis of the better measuring devices making their appearance) have yielded many interesting studies on the thermal conditions present in Tatra Mountain lakes. The measurements made by Lityński were especially important, due to his new and extended classification of Tatra lakes based on changes in water temperature in the summer season and the thermal stratification present through the year. In turn, in the inter-War period, studies became more systematic on both slopes of the Tatra Mountains, and were primarily concerned with winter oxygen content in relation to water temperature. This work bore fruit in the thermal classification of Tatra lakes developed by Szaflarski, who took account of the time at which lakes iced over, as well as maximum temperatures of surface water. After World War II, study of the vertical distribution of temperature in the Tatra lakes was continued with at different times of the year. Here, the result was a distinction drawn in winter between two main types of thermal system. An important event influencing research on lakes in the Tatra Mountains was the ongoing observation of ice-cover thicknesses on the Morskie Oko tarn beginning in 1951 and being engaged in by the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Device development in following years brought the extension of the field study and an increase in the accuracy of measurement of thermal conditions in lakes. The first work on the influence of contemporary climate changes on surface water and the development of ice cover on high-altitude lakes was also carried out and then published. In the second half of the 20th century, the study of maximum ice thicknesses and durations of ice-related events on Morskie Oko confirmed the disappearance of ice phenomena on this lake. Measurement allowed for a better understanding of the relationship between the thickness of the ice cover and lake depth; the dynamics and direction of light and temperature transformations, and the conditioning of stability where the summer stratification of Tatra lakes is concerned. In recent years, the use of thermal imaging cameras to record the dynamics of water temperatures of the surface layer has allowed changes in water temperature at any time interval to be encapsulated. In the context of the literature review of the subject matter, the author poses several questions concerning the extension of modern research to other lakes and further directions of research into the thermal and ice-cover conditions characterising the Tatra lakes. Research on the waters and ice cover of these lakes over 200 years has not given rise to a comprehensive and up-to-date study. This work is therefore an attempt to trace the development of research on the variation and formation of thermal conditions in Tatra Mountain lakes.

Keywords: hydrologia, historia, góry wysokie, Karpaty, Europa Środkowo-Wschodnia

Citation

APA: Szumny, M. (2017). Zarys rozwoju badań termiki wód i pokrywy lodowej jezior w polskich Tatrach. Przegląd Geograficzny, 89(3), 491-512. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.8
MLA: Szumny, Mirosław. "Zarys rozwoju badań termiki wód i pokrywy lodowej jezior w polskich Tatrach". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, 2017, pp. 491-512. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.8
Chicago: Szumny, Mirosław. "Zarys rozwoju badań termiki wód i pokrywy lodowej jezior w polskich Tatrach". Przegląd Geograficzny 89, no. 3 (2017): 491-512. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.8
Harvard: Szumny, M. 2017. "Zarys rozwoju badań termiki wód i pokrywy lodowej jezior w polskich Tatrach". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 89, no. 3, pp. 491-512. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2017.3.8