Identification of the factors determining the concentration and spatial distribution of Zn, Pb and Cd in the soils of the non-forest Tatra Mountains (southern Poland)

We investigated trace-metal (TM)––Zn, Pb and Cd––concentrations and spatial distributions in the uppermost layers of non-forest soils from Tatra National Park (West Carpathians). We aimed to determine the main factors affecting the distribution of TMs, as well as the risk they posed to the environment. TM concentrations were compared to the target and intervention values established by the Dutch Ministry. Principle component analysis was used to identify the potential factors affecting TM accumulation, with two-factor analysis being applied to further examine the importance of any given factor. To examine the regularity of the TM distribution, semivariograms were created. The semivariograms of Cd and Pb were similar, suggesting a moderate spatial dependence for these metal concentrations, while the Zn variogram indicated a lack of spatial continuity for this metal. We established that the Zn, Pb and Cd exceeded target levels and at some sites, Cd exceeded the intervention values, posing a strong ecological risk to the environment. Our study confirmed that the parent rock was the most important factor affecting the TM accumulation. The carbonate-free soils differed from carbonate soils in the second important factor affecting TM accumulation, for carbonate-free soils it was location when for carbonate soils–TM content in the parent material. The Zn, Pb and Cd distribution patterns indicated that Cd, but also to a lesser degree Pb and Zn, accumulation mainly resulted from long-range transport from industrialised areas, while the Zn concentrations were also affected by local sources, such as the historical mining of Zn ore.

Pinus mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the Tatra National Park

Pinus mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the Tatra National Park (TNP) were for the first time described as a separated plant association by Obidowicz (1975) from only two mires. Since then, there have been no studies on peat bogs in the TNP and they have not been mentioned in the list of vegetation types of the Park. The research regarding the dwarf pine shrubs on mires in the Tatra Mountains was carried out in 2019. We mapped all patches of such vegetation (total – ~2 ha) on which we made 26 relevés. P. mugo shrubs on peat bogs occur within the complex of mire habitats, such as Norway spruce bog woodlands, raised bogs and poor fens. The shrub layer is dominated by Pinus mugo with admixture of dwarfish Picea abies. Typical plants of the herb layer are Vaccinium myrtillus, V. vitis-idaea, Eriophorum vaginatum and Oxycoccus palustris, whereas the most common mosses are Sphagnum magellanicum, S. capillifolium, S. russowi, Pleurozium schreberi. P. mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the TNP belong to the association Sphagno magellanici-Pinetum mugo.

„Naprzeciw Tatr” — Gorce jako tatrzańskie peryferie?

The Tatra Mountains and the Gorce Mountains are mountain ranges lying next to each other. The widespread knowledge and popularity of the Tatra Mountains and the anthropopressure occurring in them indicate the dominant nature of these mountains in the consciousness of Polish society. The Gorce Mountains, meanwhile, are unknown to many, often overlooked and unpopular, both among tourists and writers. The peripheral nature of the Gorce region is related to the establishment of the center of Polish mountains in the Tatras. Their myth and majesty cast a shadow on the lower, unpopularized Gorce and contribute to creating a way of experiencing them. The article analyzes the relationship between the Gorce and the Tatra Mountains. The model of the center–periphery in the horizontal approach, proposed by Elżbieta Rybicka, was used to describe the phenomenon.

O zakopiańskich rezydentkach

The residents of Zakopane are the group of permanent inhabitants who were not born in the Podhale region, but it was their choice to connect themselves to it. The formation of this group is the result of the social-demographic changes in the Tatra mountains at the beginning of the 20th century and in the interwar period. It is a group that is diversified and therefore difficult to define. It figures as a link between the highlanders who are ingrained into the space of Podhale and those who treat it in a pragmatic and utilitarian way. The residents constitute the cultural phenomenon present in literary works as well as in the cultural life of Zakopane during the end of 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. The main subject of the article is a portrayal of the residents — historical figures and literary heroines — taking into account their functions in the society of Zakopane of those times: the groups which have been highlighted are schoolgirls, the women who provide accommodation to the tourists, and the organizers of literary saloons.

CONTRIBUTION TO KNOWLEDGE ON THE VARIABILITY OF AROLLA PINE WOODLANDS OF THE NORTH-EASTERN TATRA MOUNTAINS

Knowledge of the overall syntaxonomic and habitat variability of forest communities with Arolla pine (Pinus cembra) within the Tatra Mountains (Western Carpathians) is still insufficient as field research was hindered by their hardly accessible localities and deforestation for high mountain grazing. Arolla pine woodlands were traditionally classified within the association Pino cembrae-Piceetum Myczkowski et Lesinski 1974, but recent surveys recognize more numerous units. Hitherto unpublished releves from the north-eastern part of the Tatra Mountains document the occurrence of several floristically and ecologically distinct Arolla pine communities: (1) acid woodland of Homogyno alpinae-Pinetum cembrae on nutrient-poor habitats over quartzitic bedrock, and (2) calcareous woodlands of species-poor Pyrolo rotundifoliae-Pinetum cembrae of sites with a well-developed, tangled humus soil horizon, Cystopterido montanae-Pinetum cembrae on habitats influenced by both limestones and quartzites, Primulo elatioris-Pinetum cembrae bound to sites with the most favourable humidity, and Seslerio tatrae-Pinetum cembrae with the most pronounced calcareous character.