
Jama pod Krogom, Slovenia
Jama pod Krogom (Pod Krogom Cave) lies beneath the Veliki Badin massif, right at the southern border between Slovenia and Croatia. The entrance to the cave opens in a rock wall, just below the Sočerga-Buzet road on the Croatian side of the border, while the majority of the cave passages lies on Slovenian territory. The total length of the tunnels is about 350 m, and the depth is only 5 m. A good 20 m below the cave entrance, there are several permanent karst springs. Jama pod Krogom is also an occasional spring, since during heavy rainfall, water flows out of the cave. The direction and speed of the abundant water flow through the cave are also evidenced by the scallop patterns on the walls, which are absent only in the entrance part of the cave, where the water slows down and mud settles on the walls. The rock walls throughout the cave are covered with a dark, probably manganese coating, which is characteristic of permanently flooded tunnels. This coating also covers the once bright stalactites and stalagmites, making the cave relatively dark throughout. The stalactite crust and stalactites on the floor, walls, and ceiling were undoubtedly formed in slightly different climatic and water conditions than the younger dark coating. The latter reaches the ceiling in all tunnels, as the cave is occasionally completely flooded.

Entrance of the cave Jama pod Krogom.
Jama pod Krogom is home to a rich crustacean fauna, which differs from other caves in the interior of Slovenia mainly by the presence of certain species that are widespread in Southeastern Dinarides. A remarkable component of the aquatic fauna is the large cirolanid crustacean Sphaeromatides virei, present all over the cave waters. Another specialty is the cladoceran Alona sketi, one of the only three troglobiotic cladoceran species known in the world.

Selfie of the field work team (Grega, Maja).
Words by Dren Dolničar & Grega Benko
Photos by Maja Zagmajster
