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National
park "Krka"
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Dalmatia
has numerous karst "beauties", rivers that flow into
the sea from the mountain hinterland, but the Krka has the greatest
natural and scenic importance. A deep gorge and seven systems
of travertine or tufa cascades form flowing lakes leaving no one
indifferent, and experts talk about the great scientific value
of the river and its surroundings.
The first proposal to proclaim this area a national park came
on the eve of the Second Worl War, but the war made it impossible.
In 1948 one of the first pieces of nature-protection legislation
covered the course of the Krka from Bilusic-buk (the first cascade
system) to Skradinski buk (the last cascade system). Somewhat
later the endemic trout that lives in the Krka was protected.
However, there were parallel plans to build several hydroelecrtic
power stations on the river which would have taken water from
the cascades, so a higher form of protection, the proclamation
of a national park, was not enacted and the opposing sides engaged
in longlasting furious polemics. Finally they reached a compromise.
Hydroenergy was giver precedence in the upper course, in the middle
and lower course arguments for the national park prevailed, which
was proclaimed by the Sabor in 1985. If a new power plant is
not built in the upper course for any reason, and if an agreement
is reached about the work regime of the existing one (if the cascade
systems in the upper course get sufficient amounts of water),
then the national park could be extended for a further 20 kilometres
upriver, as far as Knin.
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About two thirds of the rivercourse are part of the existing national
park, which includes most of the river lakes and the two richest
cascade system (Roski slap and Skradinski buk). Downriver from
Skradinski buk the Krka flows at sea level and sea water comes
right up to the cascades. If this is our criterion, then the Krka
is 52 kilometres long (its fresh-water course). Most authors add
to this the rivercourse flooded by the sea right down to Sibenik,
making the river 72 kilometres. This lowest aquatorium runs partly
through a gorge, partly through a flooded karst polje today called
Lake Prokljan. Because of its biological features and interest
(biocenosis of brackish water) it, too, has been included in the
boundaries of the national park, although the landscape downriver
from Skradin cannot be compared to that above it. The national
park starts at the line joining the medieval fortifications Trosenj-grad
and Necven - grad and ends at the bridge in Sibenik. It has an
area of 142.2 square kilometres,
25.6 square kilometres of which are water surface. |
The Krka cascades were formed in the same way as those in the
Plitvice Lakes (we described the process there), but here the
amount of water is incomparably greater. An annual average of
55 cubic metres a second flows down Skradinski buk, and after
strong rain this amount increases up to 300 cubic metres a second.
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| Fauna
Biological research increased after the
national park was proclaimed, and although a lot more remains
to be done, we can already say that the fauna here is exceptionally
rich and interesting. This is especially true of fish, birds,
amphibians and reptiles. Newer ichtiological research established
17 fish species from 6 families in the fresh-water river course.
Seven of them are endemics of the Adriatic region, and one species
of trout lives only in the Krka. Literature shows that there
many be 8 more species of fresh-water fish, and several more
endemics. This makes the Krka one of the most interesting European
rivers in number of
species and endemics.
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| Visovac
Visovac islet is a particular jewel of the
national park. A green park in a blue lake, just over 1 hectare
of area, with a church and a monastery whose beginnings go back
to the fourteenth century. The monastery houses a rich museum
and art collection (including 620 Turkish documents), and twice
a year (on 2 and 15 August) it is a pilgrimage centre. Anyone
who has walked through the burning Dalmatian rockland for even
a short time in summer must find Visovac a miracle.
Almost the same can be said of the Krka as a whole. A turquoise
mirage in the surrounding semideserted landscape!
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Pasman tourist board 23271 b.b.
tel : 023 260 155 , fax : 023 260 155
e- mail
: pasman@ugljan-pasman.com
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