Late Pleistocene-Holocene sea-level rise and the pattern of coastal karst inundation: records from submerged speleothems along the Eastern Adriatic Coast (Croatia)

Our results partially match the sea-level curves reconstructed for adjacent areas (Tyrrhenian Coast and French Mediterranean Coast). However, the start of the marine overgrowth on speleothems in pit caves indicates strong dependence on the steepness of the terrain. On steep, extensively karstified coasts, marine overgrowths on speleothems coincided with the submersion of the speleothems due to the relatively short distance between the pit and the open sea and fast penetration of seawater into the pit. In contrast, marine overgrowths on speleothems in pits in the flat terrains occurred later because speleothem growth ceased due to flooding with fresh groundwater. Later, the fresh water was replaced by seawater due to the greater distance of the inland pits to the former coast.