The Beauty of the Aggtelek National Park II. [antikvár]

The Aggtelek Karst The Aggtelek National Park is unique amongst Hungary's national parks in that it was established in the first place to protect non-living natural treasures, that is, the geological surface formations and cave systems of the region. At the same time, of course, the typical karst flóra and fauna of Aggtelek is alsó protected. The totál area of the park covers somé twenty thousand hectares and is bordered to the south by the Northern Borsod Hills, to the east by the Cserehát Hills and to the west and north by the Hungarian-Slovak bordér. The karst continues in Slovakia as the Slovak Karst Reserve. Aggtelek has been officially protected (Biosphere Reserve and Landscape Protected Area) since 1978 and was declared a national park in 1985. The wide valley of the Bódva stream divides the region into two distinct parts, the Aggtelek Karst in the north-west and the Rudabánya Hills in the south-east. With an elevation of 160-604 metres above sea level the area which comprises the national park was originally förmed on the limestone deposits of a shallow tropical sea that existed here in the Triassic Period somé 220-240 millión years ago. Later, in the Cretaceous Period, the land here rose and became eroded whilst the underlying rock was cracked by heavy tectonic movements. Today's landscape is characterized by limestone formations. Plateaux, depressions, sink holes that allow surface water to seep below ground, springs fed from subterranean waters, ponds, streams, small gorges and rocky formations all contribute to the region's varied character. And below the surface lie the cave systems for which Aggtelek is most famous. 1