Le grotte sommerse della penisola del Karaburun (Albania): primi dati

EnIn 2003,2004 and 2005,three surveys were carried out to explore the submerged coast of the Southern Albania.Four submarine caves were found during the first expeditionat the tip of the Karaburun Peninsula,and here the first description of them is given together with the map.During the second and third expedition,a more accurate description of biological features and of linear measures has been done of the submerged portion of Haxhi Ali,the largest of the described caves. Distinctive characteristics of the submerged caves of the Albanian coast are ben- thic assemblages which are not common or even absent from the Italian side.A very noticeable one of these is the population of Hypsichomus stichophthalmus (Polychaeta)in the Haxhi Ali cave.In general,also vagile benthos appeared more abundant (fishes,echinoderms,worms,crustaceans) han in Italian caves.From the abiotic point of view,a lower temperature has been measured more than 3 m below the sea level,which probably is the main responsible of these biotic assemblage differences.ItNegli anni 2003,2004 e 2005 sono state organizzate tre spedizioni finalizzate all’esplorazione degli ambienti costieri dell ’Albania Meridionale.Durante la prima spedizione all ’estremità della penisola Karaburun sono state rinvenute ed esplorate 4 cavità sommerse il cui rilievo speditivo e la descrizione sommaria dei popolamenti rinvenuti vengono qui presentati per la prima volta.Nel corso della seconda e della terza spedizione si sono perfezionate le misurazioni e le caratteristiche biologiche della parte sommersa della grande grotta di Haxhi Ali