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This paper presents the first results of palynological research from the Spila nad Procjepom cave, situated in the Mljet National Park, Croatia. The palynological data obtained, enables a partial insight into the local vegetation cover, temporal changes in the vegetation during the accumulation of studied deposits (at ca. 3500 cal years BP), and post-depositional processes that influenced the palynomorph assemblage. Results of palynofacies analysis indicate changes from fluvial (channel deposits), through palustrine to terrestrial environments. Although the interpretation of changes in plant cover, due to the lack of statistical significance, should be taken with caution, preserved pollen types confirm the dominance of the Mediterranean evergreen forest vegetation on Mljet island. Moreover, a high proportion of non-arboreal pollen (NAP) indicates some level of forest degradation, ranging from Mediterranean open forest to degraded maquis. Abundant charcoal additionaly confirms that the cave was inhabited by humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the origins of two tombolos (one recent and another fossil/submerged) on the southwestern coast of Prvić Island, which is located in the Kvarner area in the northeastern part of the Adriatic Sea. A recent tombolo on Cape Pipa was formed by the erosion of Quaternary deposits and Palaeogene siliciclastic rocks. The submerged tombolo is much bigger, clearly visible on the sea bed toward the southwest. The conditions for forming a submerged and recent tombolo have occurred during a slow rise and then stagnation of sea level of the Adriatic Sea in the Holocene. The sea flooded the fossil tombolo probably in the final part of a period of rapid sea-level rise at the beginning of the Holocene when a large proportion of the Quaternary sediments were eroded. Waves from the northwest (tramuntana) and southeast (jugo) refract and diffract around the tombolo. The nourishment of the beach body happens permanently on both sides of the cape. Accumulated sediments are protected by resistant rocky blocks of breccia on the peak of Cape Pipa, acting as a natural tombolo. Due to the fact that wave directions are perpendicular to the beach coastline, they do not generate longshore currents that would erode sediment in beach bodies around Cape Pipa. Therefore, the recent tombolo is probably stable in the present climatic and oceanographic conditions in the Kvarner area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous karst dolines have been formed along the Croatian coast and many have been submerged during the Late Glacial and Holocene sea level rise. The coastal area of Cres Island in the Northern Adriatic is a typical example of this geomorphological setting, where transitional forms from subaerial to submerged dolines are present. Once dolines are formed they can accumulate soil, water and sediments due to their morphology. Sediments are an especially valuable source of environmental data. This paper presents the results of the study of foraminiferal assemblages and sediment geochemistry, supplemented with grain-size and mineralogical data, from the marine ponds developed in the karst dolines on Cres Island. Obtained data is correlated with the sediment core record from submerged dolines in the present-day embayments along the coastal zone of Cres Island. In total, 3 sediment cores were collected in the marine ponds Marinska, Arcij and Podbrajde, while 2 longer sediment cores have been extracted from the Jaz and Sonte embayments. The Marinska, Arcij and Podbrajde marine ponds have distinct geochemical and mineralogical sediment compositions, with monospecific foraminiferal assemblages and generally differ from each other. The common characteristics are their high N and P concentrations and the algal origin of organic matter. Agglutinated foraminiferal taxa (Haplophragmoides canariensis and Trochammina inflata), typical for intertidal environments, are abundant in the brackish-water Marinska pond, while stress-tolerant species Ammonia tepida has been identified in the Arcij marine pond. Environmental conditions in the Podbrajde marine pond did not facilitate the development of a rich foraminiferal fauna. Results from the present-day marine ponds enabled recognition of similar environments in the sediment cores collected in the Jaz and Sonte embayments that were progressively inundated during the Holocene sea level rise. A palaeo-marine pond existed in the Sonte embayment until 6610 cal BP, when the sea flooded the investigated area. A marine pond in the Jaz embayment was formed at 711 cal BP. Low-diversity foraminiferal assemblages in these palaeo-ponds are similar to those recognized in the present-day Arcij marine pond on Cres Island. However, differences in the geochemical composition of palaeo-marine ponds, in comparison to the present-day ponds, exist. They might be attributed to climate variability over time and variations in the geological setting of each environment. High Mo concentrations and abundant organic matter content are the main sediment characteristics of the recognized palaeo-marine ponds in the Jaz and Sonte embayments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]