Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant rocks, such as quartzite, given the right conditions. Subterranean drainage may limit surface water, with few to no rivers or lakes. However, in regions where the dissolved bedrock is covered or confined by one or more superimposed non-soluble rock strata, distinctive karst features may occur only at subsurface levels and can be totally missing above ground.
A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. The term is sometimes used to refer to doline, enclosed depressions that are in locally also known as vrtače and shakeholes, and to openings where surface water enters into underground passages known as ponor, swallow hole or swallet. A cenote is a type of sinkhole that exposes groundwater underneath. A sink or stream sink are more general terms for sites that drain surface water, possibly by infiltration into sediment or crumbled rock.
Landforms are categorized by characteristic physical attributes such as their creating process, shape, elevation, slope, orientation, rock exposure, and soil type.
Altamura is a town and comune of Apulia, in southern Italy. It is located on one of the hills of the Murge plateau in the Metropolitan City of Bari, 45 kilometres southwest of Bari, close to the border with Basilicata. As of 2017, its population amounts to 70,595 inhabitants.
Ruvo di Puglia is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, southern Italy, that is essentially devoted to agriculture, wine and olive growing. It is part of the Murge karst landscape.
Santeramo in Colle is a town in the Metropolitan City of Bari and region of Apulia, southern Italy.
The Parco Nazionale dell'Alta Murgia is a national park in Apulia, southern Italy, established in 2004. It lies in the Murgia geographical area, with its headquarters in the town of Gravina in Puglia, and has an area of 677.39 square kilometres. It is part of a larger Special Protection Area established to protect the grass steppe, lesser kestrel's habitat.
The Altopiano delle Murge is a karst topographic plateau of rectangular shape in southern Italy. Most of it lies within Apulia and corresponds with the sub-region known as Murgia or Le Murge. The plateau lies mainly in the Metropolitan City of Bari and the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani, but extends into the provinces of Brindisi and Taranto to the south; and into Matera in Basilicata to the west. The name is believed to originate from the Latin murex, meaning "sharp stone".
The Nambung River is a river in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, 170 kilometres (106 mi) north of Perth. The river drains an area between the towns of Cervantes and Badgingarra. In its lower reaches the Nambung River forms a chain of waterholes in the Nambung Wetlands where it disappears underground into a limestone karst system 5.5 kilometres (3 mi) from the Indian Ocean.
Škocjan Caves Regional Park is located in the Škocjan Karst, a vast flat landscape that lies at an elevation between 420 and 450 m in the southeast part of the Karst area. Following its independence, the Slovenia committed itself to protecting the Škocjan Caves area; for this reason, it established Škocjan Caves Regional Park and its managing authority, the Škocjan Caves Park Public Service Agency.
The Metropolitan City of Bari is a metropolitan city in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Bari. It replaced the Province of Bari and includes the city of Bari and some forty other municipalities (comuni). It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by the Law 56/2014. It has been operative since January 1, 2015.
Cedar Sink is a vertical-walled large depression, or sinkhole, in the ground, that is located in Edmonson County, Kentucky and contained within and managed by Mammoth Cave National Park. The sinkhole measures 300 feet (91.4 m) from the top sandstone plateau to the bottom of the sink and was caused by collapse of the surface soil. The landscape is karst topography, which means the region is influenced by the dissolution of soluble rocks. Sinkholes, caves, and dolines typically characterize these underground drainage systems. Cedar Sink has a bottom area of about 7 acres (2.8 ha) and has more fertile soil compared to the ridgetops.
Pulo di Altamura is a doline located on the Murge plateau. It is the largest doline in that region and it is located about 6 kilometers (3.7 mi) north-west of the city of Altamura. It shares the local toponym pulo with other large dolines of the region, i.e. Pulicchio di Gravina, Pulo di Molfetta and Pulicchio di Toritto.
Pulicchio di Gravina is the second-largest doline in the Murge plateau after Pulo di Altamura. It falls into the territory of Gravina in Puglia, being located about 10 kilometers (6.2 mi) north of the latter, close to the border with Altamura's territory. It shares the local toponym pulo with other large dolines of the region, i.e. Pulo di Altamura, Pulo di Molfetta and Pulicchio di Toritto.
Lama is a local toponym that denotes a wide furrow in the ground typical of the Murge landscape. Lamas convey rainwater from the Murge plateau to the endpoint of the drainage basin they belong to.
The Karst Living Museum is a nature trail in Slovenia. Part of the Karst Plateau, the museum is an ecologically-important area with many karst features. It was recognized as Slovenia's best thematic trail in 2017, and the region is a Natura 2000 site.
Vito Carmelo Colamonico was an Italian geographer, geologist and scholar. His works include studies on some karst dolines and landforms of Italy, such as Pulo di Altamura, Pulicchio di Gravina and Gurio Lamanna.
Pulo di Molfetta is a doline located on the Murge plateau, in Apulia, southern Italy, around 1.5 kilometers (0.93 mi) south-west of the city of Molfetta. It originated due to the collapse of the ceiling of one or more caves. It shares the local toponym pulo with other large dolines of the region, i.e. Pulicchio di Gravina, Pulo di Molfetta and Pulicchio di Toritto.
