Polish Part Research Articles

Similarities in zooplankton community between River Drawa and its two tributaries (Polish part of River Odra)

Zooplankton communities were studied in a river and its tributaries with different hydrological, biological and physico-chemical conditions. Small similarities were noted in the zooplankton community (mostly Rotifera) between a tributary characterised by a regular bed and the river. No influence of a tributary with an irregular bed and variable water flow was noted on the zooplankton of the river it joined. It was concluded that the tributaries had very little influence on the zooplankton community in the river which they joined. The most probable reasons for this were the predatory behaviour of fry, escape of zooplankton into the river vegetation and therefore not carried down by the river current, and reproduction of zooplankton in slack waters, small floodplains and densely vegetated riparian zones of the main river.

Making a Difference in Challenging Urban Schools: Successful Principals

The article reports upon findings from four multiple-perspective case studies of successful principals in challenging urban contexts. Each principal was described as making a significant difference to the quality of school education. The findings are obtained from the Polish part of the ‘Leading Schools Successfully in Challenging Urban Contexts’: Strategies For Improvement’ project. The research design consisted of two overlapping phases: the first was a literature review to ascertain ‘what is known’ about the nature and effects of leadership in challenging urban contexts; the second involved a case-study approach, collecting data from 36 schools to explore the leadership strategies that are used by successful principals of schools that face challenging urban contexts. The analysis of the cases identified that there were several interconnected strategies that are not only important, but essential for leadership success in these schools. They are related to setting the directions, developing people, redesigning the organisation and changing the culture of the school. Each of them encompasses more specific competencies, attitudes and considerations.

Structure of the crust/mantle transition beneath the Variscan foreland in SW Poland from coincident wide-angle and near-vertical reflection data

Lower crustal and Moho reflectivity vary significantly across the transition from Trans-European Suture Zone to the Variscan Orogen of Central Europe along the SUDETES 2003 S01 profile. One 50-km segment of the 270-km profile was a detailed reflection–refraction survey called GRUNDY 2003, in which the shot points were also recorded along the Polish part of the S01 profile to produce dense recordings of wide-angle reflections. Processed near-vertical incidence (NVI) data recorded along the GRUNDY 2003 G01 line revealed highly reflective, laminated lower crust starting at ca. 7 s TWT (20–23 km depth). Moho was inferred as the base of the crustal reflectivity at ca. 11.5–12 s (33–37 km depth). Wide-angle data recorded along the S01 profile, processed and stacked using CDP method with up to 41-fold, revealed reflectivity associated with the lower crust and the Moho in two areas: east of the Odra Fault zone and close to the Dolsk Fault. Moho boundary deduced from both the NVI and wide-angle stacks fits well to the “refraction” Moho constrained by the ray-tracing modelling and joint refraction/reflection tomography of P g and P mP arrivals performed along the S01 profile. Part of the Moho boundary imaged along the S01 profile (close to the Dolsk Fault zone) is proposed to represent a metamorphic front of lower crustal rocks partly undergone eclogite transformation. This observation is consistent with the proposed southward underthrusting of Baltica lower crust below the Avalonian acretionary prism. The postulated thin (up to 10 km) high-velocity eclogite layer overlying “normal” velocity mantle would also help to reconcile the apparent contradiction of a high heat-flow observed over the area with the high P n velocities.

Zmiany pokrycia terenu na pograniczu polsko-słowackim na przykładzie Małych Pienin

This paper discusses the post-1930 directions to land-cover changes in the Male Pieniny Mts. located in the central part of the northern Carpathians. This environmentally homogenous area was divided by the Polish-Slovakian state border after World War I, having previously been also culturally homogenous, with Ruthenians inhabitants living in both northern and southern parts. After World War II, a resettlement of Ruthenians out of the Polish part of the mountains took place. From the 1950s onwards, the Polish part became increasingly important as a sheep-grazing region. In contrast, on the Slovakian side, the area experienced gradual post-war depopulation and an abandonment of agricultural land, the communist-inspired development of industrialization having induced out-migration. While collectivization did take place in Slovakia after World War II, an increase in the area of agricultural land in mountainous regions was impeded by the local environmental conditions. The research conducted based itself upon information on archival 1:100 000-scale topographic maps, a contemporary SPOT 5 (2004) panchromatic image and an SRTM digital elevation model. Three land-cover classes were defined by means of visual interpretation and on-screen digitization, i.e. forests, agricultural land and built-up areas. Analysis for the period 1936–2004 revealed an increase in the area of forest on both the Polish and Slovakian sides, as combined with a decrease in the area of agricultural land. The share of agricultural land decreased from 74% to 44% on the Polish side and from 82% to 54% on the Slovakian. At the same time the share accounted by forests increased from 23% to 54% in Poland and from 16% to 45% in Slovakia. A slight decrease in the built-up area was to be observed on both sides of the border. The annual rate of forest-cover change reached 1.26% in the case of the Polish part, 1.47% for the Slovakian. Although Ruthenians were only resettled out of the Polish part, the directions to long-term land-cover changes were similar on both sides of the border. However, landcover changes triggered by the resettlement action are visibly less dependent on environmental conditions (slope and elevation). Thus, the changes associated with a gradual depopulation in Slovakia, as connected with the abandonment of agricultural land, were of a more selective nature, occurring at higher elevations and on steeper slopes.

The Effect of Climate on Tree-Ring Chronologies of Native and Nonnative Tree Species Growing Under Homogenous Site Conditions

Dendroclimatic studies were carried out in the experimental stands composed of many tree species situated in the Polish part of the Baltic sea-coast. Increment cores were taken from a 100-years old trees of 2 native species: Norway spruce (<i>Picea abies (L.) Karst.</i>), and Scots pine (<i>Pinus sylvestris</i> L.) and 3 nonnative species: Douglas fir (<i>Pseudotsuga menziesii</i> (Mirb.) Franco), Sitka spruce (<i>Picea sitchensis</i> (Bong.) Carr.) and Silver fir (<i>Abies alba</i> Mill.). Thirty trees of each species were cored. The relationships between the diameter increment and the thermal and pluvial conditions during the period from 1925 to 2005 were analyzed on the basis of standardized tree-ring chronologies and climatic data. It was found that precipitation and temperature of the growing season and months preceding that season affected the annual diameter increment of all investigated tree species. The current year winter and early spring temperatures as well as February and August precipitation had a similar effect on the variation of diameter increment of trees. On the other hand thermal and pluvial conditions of the current year June differentiated the increment rhythm of individual species. A very strong negative effect on diameter growth of trees was observed in the case of winter and early spring frosts. Norway spruce turned out to be a species most resistant to low temperatures. The investigated tree species, especially Norway spruce, was susceptible to water deficiency in the soil during spring and summer. In the case of Scots pine a high precipitation in June stimulated its growth. The diameter increments of Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, Scots pine, and Silver fir were more strongly connected with air temperature than with precipitation. So called all-species chronology of tree-ring width, constructed during this study, permitted to verify the factors having a similar effect on growth response of the investigated tree species. It reflected the mutual characteristics of diameter increments of trees of various species.

Salt geology and mining traditions: Kalush and Stebnyk mines (Fore-Carpathian region, Ukraine)

Development of industrial underground salt mining in western Ukraine has started in the mid-19th century with the discovery of large potash-magnesium salt deposits in Kalush (1854) and Stebnyk (1901). Potash salts concentrations occur within the Miocene sedimentary complexes of Ukrainian Carpathian Foredeep (correlated with the successions observed in the Polish part of Carpathian Foredeep) as isolated lenses or compressed folded layers of varied extent. Thickness of exploited potash seams varies from 4 m up to 150 m and the main mineral is sylvine, accompanied also by carnallite, kainite and langbeinite. Both Kalush and Stebnyk mines, now closed, belong to the first places in the world, where exploitation of potash salts were realized. Their unique historical character, documenting the salt exploitation traditions in this region and evolution of mining techniques, ought to be widely advertised as the valid points of Ukrainian-Polish cross-border geotouristic route, named “Traces of large extinct mammals, earth wax, oil and salt”.

Making a Difference in Challenging Urban Schools: Successful Principals

The article reports upon findings from four multiple-perspective case studies of successful principals in challenging urban contexts. Each principal was described as making a significant difference to the quality of school education. The findings are obtained from the Polish part of the ‘Leading Schools Successfully in Challenging Urban Contexts’: Strategies For Improvement’ project. The research design consisted of two overlapping phases: the first was a literature review to ascertain ‘what is known’ about the nature and effects of leadership in challenging urban contexts; the second involved a case-study approach, collecting data from 36 schools to explore the leadership strategies that are used by successful principals of schools that face challenging urban contexts. The analysis of the cases identified that there were several interconnected strategies that are not only important, but essential for leadership success in these schools. They are related to setting the directions, developing people, redesigning the organisation and changing the culture of the school. Each of them encompasses more specific competencies, attitudes and considerations.

Geochemical characteristics of organic matter in the Lower Palaeozoic rocks of the Peribaltic Syneclise (Poland)

Organic matter occurring in Lower Palaeozoic rocks of variable lithology was investigated for its origin, depositional environment and thermal maturity. Samples from nine boreholes located in the Polish part of the Peribaltic Syneclise were collected for performing Rock-Eval Analysis, palynological investigation for Thermal Alteration Index (TAI), solvent extraction, preparative layer chromatography (PLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) of aliphatic and aromatic compound fractions. It was found that kerogen belongs to either type I or commonly, to type II. It derives from variable, planktonic and planktonic-bacterial primary organic matter deposited in dysoxic environments in the eastern part of the Syneclise and in anoxic/suboxic conditions in the western and central parts. Organic matter is in the thermal evolution stage from late diagenesis to advanced metagenesis. Correlation of biomarker parameters, TAI and Rock-Eval results show that the thermal maturity of organic matter falls into three regional groups, increasing from the north-east to the south-west along the crystalline basement of the Eastern European Platform. The organic matter contained in Ordovician and Cambrian sediments of the western part of the Syneclise is overmature, reaching metagenesis. This is most probably related to the activity of the Teisseyre-Tornquist Zone, where the Baltica and Eastern Avalonia paleocontinents collided during the Late Ordovician. It is also reflected in the profiles by elevated values of aromatic hydrocarbon and sulphur compound parameters, which show the highest levels of thermal maturity for organic matter present in the sediments of the Ordovician and Lower Silurian. Local influence of igneous intrusions on organic matter is also visible in changes in thermal maturity values at the direct contact with diabase dykes.

The stability of fish assemblages under unstable conditions: A ten-year series from the Polish part of the Vistula Lagoon

Time-series of the species caught in a complex of four fyke nets that were monitored and recorded by a team of volunteer fishers provided the basis for identifying trends in the changes of fish assemblages during the 1995-2006 period. The fish assemblages exhibited strong seasonality with herring, Clupea harengus L. domination during spring. In the summer season, juvenile pikeperch, Sander lucioperca (L.) and ruffe, Gymnocephalus cernuus (L.), were dominant in number. The relative abundance of eel, Anguilla anguilla (L.) exhibited a clearly decreasing trend due to fishery exploitation and the lack of stocking. The decreased share of the largest pikeperch individuals suggested that this species is being overexploited. Ruffe exhibited a strong decline more probably due to strong impact from numerous black cormorants. Increased abundance was observed in the case of roach, Rutilus rutilus (L.), flounder, Platichthys flesus (L.) and round goby, Neogobius melanostomus (Pall.), a new species in ecosystem.

Coprological Study on Helminth Fauna in Eurasian Lynx (Lynx lynx) From the Białowieża Primeval Forest in Eastern Poland

One hundred fecal samples were collected during research on Eurasian lynx ecology and food habits in the Polish part of the Białowieza Primeval Forest (BPF) from 2001 to 2006. Seventy-three percent of samples contained eggs or larvae of helminths. A total of 10 species of helminths was identified, including 3 Cestoda (Diphyllobothrium latum, Spirometra janickii, and unidentified species of Taeniidae), 1 Trematoda (Alaria alata), and 6 Nematoda (Aelurostrongylus abstrusus, Ancylostoma tubaeforme, Eucoleus aerophilus, Metastrongylus sp., Nematodirus sp., and Toxocara cati). Alaria alata has not been reported previously in lynx. A statistical comparison of the 2 techniques used to isolate eggs, i.e., flotation and sedimentation, indicates that sedimentation was more effective.

Sexual Dimorphism in Skulls of the Lowland European Bison,Bison Bonasus Bonasus

The research was conducted on 600 (311 male and 289 female) European bison skulls of the Lowland line collected between 1967 and 2006. The specimens came from the bison breeding centre in Białowieza (n = 67) and from the free-ranging population of the Polish part of the Białowieza Forest (n = 533). Two indices best differentiating male and female skulls were selected: one being the quotient of the orbital breadth EctEct and the length of the splanchnocranium StP, the second being the quotient of the neurocranium length BSt and the basal skull length BP. Using these indices we constructed an equation which produced negative values for females and positive values for males; 223 (74%) of the male skulls produced positive values consistent with sex, and 82 (26%) produced negative values, indicating female features. Those features were present mainly in skulls of young males (< 4 years old). 230 (80%) of the female skulls had shapes typical of the female sex, whereas 59 (20%) displayed male features.

Range expansion of an invasive alien species, Chinese sleeper, &lt;I&gt;Perccottus glenii&lt;/I&gt; Dybowski, 1877 (Teleostei: Odontobutidae) in the Vistula River drainage

Background. In October 2007 an invasive alien species, the Chinese sleeper, Perccottus glenii Dybowski, 1877 (known also as the Amur sleeper), was recorded in carp ponds in KrakĂłw-Mydlniki (southern part of Vistula River drainage). As far as we know, this is the uppermost site in the Polish part of the Vistula River drainage. Thirty-six individuals of P. glenii were collected during fishery works. Basic morphometric measurements were obtained, following the commonly accepted procedures, in order to describe the general body shape of P. glenii.

Parasitic microfungi of the Tatra Mountains. 3. Spermosporina gymnadeniae (Hyphomycetes): species new to Slovakia and new records from Poland

Spermosporina gymnadeniae (Hyphomycetes) on Gymnadenia sp. (Orchidaceae) collected in the Polish part of the Tatra Mts was described in 2003. The fungus was recently found at new localities in Poland and Slovakia. It was recorded on Gymnadenia conopsea s.l. and Dactylorhiza fuchsii, which are new hosts of this parasite. The fungus is described and additional illustrations are provided.

Clay mineral formation during podzolization in an alpine environment of the Tatra Mountains, Poland

AbstractThe processes of clay mineral formation were studied in seven podzol profiles developed on granitic regoliths in the Polish part of the Tatra Mountains. The selected profiles have similar parent material and macroscopically represent different stages of soil development (from initial to advanced). Bulk soil material (&lt;2 mm fraction) and separated clay fractions (&lt;2 µm) were studied using a petrographic microscope, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive spectrometry methods. The mineral compositions of the bulk soil samples are more or less the same (quartz, feldspars, mica and minor amounts of other phyllosilicates). The clay fractions are composed of mica and mixed-layer minerals which contain hydrated interlayers of vermiculitic and/or smectitic type, and kaolinite. Smaller amounts of chlorite, feldspars and quartz were also identified. Chlorite is present almost exclusively (except for one profile) in lower soil horizons (C, B/C, B). The amount of minerals with hydrated interlayers increases up the profiles. Kaolinite is present in all the samples except for the lowermost soil horizons (C) of two of the profiles. In some of the B horizons, the formation of hydroxy interlayers within hydrated interlayers is observed. The main processes of clay mineral formation recognized in the soils studied are: inheritance from the parent rocks; crystallization of kaolinite from soil solutions; the formation of dioctahedral vermiculite at the expense of inherited dioctahedral mica, and the formation of dioctahedral smectite at the expense of vermiculite. The recognized sequence of transformation is as follows: M → R0 M-V (12 Å or 14 Å) → R0 M-12 Å V → R1 M-12 Å V → 12 Å V → V-S → S. Observed formation of hydroxy interlayers seems to be pH dependent, starting when the pH ⩾ 4.4. The process of dissolution of primary silicates occurring simultaneously with the transformation is also documented.

Epilithic diatoms as indicators of water quality and ecological status of streams of Sudety Mountains (South-Western Poland)

Epilithic diatom communities in high-altitude streams in the Polish part of Sudety Mountains were studied in the years 2004-2006 to assess water quality and ecological status. In the Polish river typology, these water bodies have been separated as the type 3: the Sudety stream characterized by a small catchment area (< 100 km 2 ), V- or U-shaped valley, high velocity of flow, significant channel slope and a bed composed of boulders, stones and cobbles. The stream sections under study are located in Karkonosze Mountains and in Snieznik Massif and have been chosen following the European Union's recommendations for reference sites. The Karkonosze streams possess slightly acidic or neutral waters, with very poor electrolyte content, low total hardness and low total P content. Streams in Snieznik Massif have alkaline waters, with poor or medium electrolyte content, higher total hardness and higher total P content. Altogether 184 diatom taxa were determined. Species diversity ranged from poor (8-9 taxa) to moderately rich (82 taxa). The most abundant were Diatoma mesodon, Eunotia exigua, Achnanthidium minutissimum, Fragilaria capucina var. rumpens, Encvonema minutum, Fragilariforma virescens, Gomphonema gracile and Tabellaria flocculosa. Three diatom indices were applied in order to assess water quality: the Trophic Index (TI), the Saprobic Index (SI) and the Index of Pollution Sensibility (IPS). The TI values varied from 0.53 to 1.83 and in majority of the streams indicated ultraoligotrophic or oligotrophic waters. The SI values changed from 1.09 to 1.55 and indicated none (oligosaprobic) or slight (oligo-β-mesosaprobic) organic pollution. The IPS values were usually not lower than 17.7 and indicated waters of low trophy and unpolluted or imperceptibly polluted. Most of the streams studied may serve as reference sites for the Polish type 3 of running waters, i.e. the stream of Sudety Mts.

New basin modelling results from the Polish part of the Central European Basin system: implications for the Late Cretaceous–Early Paleogene structural inversion

Combined subsidence and thermal 1D modelling was performed on six well-sections located in the north-western Mid-Polish Trough/Swell in the eastern part of the Central European Basin system. The modelling allowed constraining quantitatively both the Mesozoic subsidence and the magnitude of the Late Cretaceous–Paleocene inversion and erosion. The latter most probably reached 2,400 m in the Mid-Polish Swell area. The modelled Upper Cretaceous thickness did not exceed 500 m, and probably corresponded to 200–300 m in the swell area as compared with more than 2,000 m in the adjacent non-inverted part of the basin. Such Upper Cretaceous thickness pattern implies early onset of inversion processes, probably in the Late Turonian or Coniacian. Our modelling, coupled with previous results of stratigraphic and seismic studies, demonstrates that the relatively low sedimentation rates in the inverted part of the basin during the Late Cretaceous were the net result of several discrete pulses of non-deposition and/or erosion that were progressively more pronounced towards the trough axis. The last phase of inversion started in the Late Maastrichtian and was responsible for the total amount of erosion, which removed also the reduced Upper Cretaceous deposits. According to our modelling results, a Late Cretaceous heat-flow regime which is similar to the present-day conditions (about 50 mW/m2) was responsible for the observed organic maturity of the Permian-Mesozoic rocks. This conclusion does not affect the possibility of Late Carboniferous–Permian and Late Permian–Early Triassic thermal events.

Lichenometric dating of landslide episodes in the Western part of the Polish Flysch Carpathians

Landslides are common in the Polish part of the Flysch Carpathians. They are controlled mostly by lithology and tectonics of the bedrock and by climate. They are a major factor of slope transformation. Rock cliffs within deep landslides are overgrown with lichen thalli of the Rhizocarpon genus, so these cliffs may be dated using lichenometry. This paper presents the basics of lichenometry as well as its applications in geomorphological research in Poland and worldwide. Also presented are results of lichenometric dating of landslide–rockfall walls in the western part of the Polish Flysch Carpathians. The study helps to identify landslide episodes from historical times. The results obtained indicate that on the slopes studied there coexist several generations of landslide–rockfall forms of various age, including recent and active ones.

Oligocene cold-seep carbonates from the Carpathians and their inferred relation to gas hydrates

The Krosno Formation of the Outer Carpathians is composed of synorogenic deposits laid down in the Silesian foredeep basin in front of an accretionary prism. The Oligocene shales of the Krosno Formation from Świątkowa Wielka (the Polish part of the Outer Carpathians) contain numerous authigenic carbonate rocks: concretions, a laminated limestone bed, and a carbonate build-up consisting of intraformational breccia. The application of stable carbon isotope analysis revealed that the formation of these carbonates was induced by methane oxidation. The presence of fossilized giant Beggiatoa-like filaments and large quantities of framboidal pyrite indicate that methane oxidation was microbially driven and coupled with sulfate reduction. A model of origin of these cold-seep carbonates in relation to hydrocarbon seepage is herein presented. Characteristic druses with clast-like appearance are thought to inherit their outlines from former clasts of gas hydrate that had been present within the build-up. It is proposed that thick gas hydrate deposits existed in the southern part of the Silesian basin at that time. This theory is consistent with regional, geotectonic, and palaeobathymetric data and provides a ready explanation of the major phenomena that have been recorded in the Krosno Formation.

Effective sub-Zechstein salt imaging using low-frequency seismics — Results of the GRUNDY 2003 experiment across the Variscan front in the Polish Basin

The extent of the Variscan deformation front is one of the key problems of the regional geology of the Central European Permian Basin system, particularly in its Polish part. Conventional reflection seismics usually fails to produce a satisfactory image of the pre-Permian strata due to the shielding effect of Zechstein (Upper Permian) evaporites. Thus we used a novel seismic acquisition technique to study the base of the Permian complex and its Variscan basement. In the GRUNDY 2003 experiment we combined wide-angle reflection–refraction measurements with the near-vertical reflection seismics by the use of the constant geophone array with dense (100 m) receiver spacing occupying 50-km long profile. 3D design of the experiment, covering 50 × 10 km area, helped in eliminating the effect of out-of-plane propagations and local inhomogeneities. An effective integration of traveltime tomography, CDP reflection processing and prestack depth migration of wide-angle reflections applied to our data, allowed us to present the model in which we deduced the contact zone of the Variscan overthrust structure (Variscan front) with its molasse-filled foredeep. The latter might be a gas-generation zone, which is of a great importance for hydrocarbons prospecting in this area.

Organic geochemical study and genetic correlation of natural gas, oil and Menilite source rocks in the area between San and Stryi rivers (Polish and Ukrainian Carpathians)

We studied the source rocks and petroleum accumulations in the Carpathian Mountains of the Polish-Ukrainian border area, between the San and Stryi rivers. A total of 108 Oligocene Menilite Formation rock samples, 12 oil and 15 gas samples accumulated in the Oligocene reservoirs, and one oil and gas sample from an Upper Cretaceous reservoir were analysed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the petroleum potential of the Menilite Formation in this area and to evaluate potential genetic correlations between source rock and petroleum. The Menilite Formation represents a prolific source rock with TOC content ranging from 2 to 7 wt%, locally exceeding 20 wt%. Algal type II and mixed type II/III kerogens dominate but sometimes type III kerogen and, rarely, type I kerogen occur. Thermal maturity of the Oligocene Menilite Formation increases from outer to inner tectonic units, from the immature in the Boryslav-Pokuttya and Skole units to the overmature in the southern parts of Silesian and Dukla units. As a consequence, petroleum potential decreases in the same order. Geochemical analyses reveal that oil and gas generation and migration processes within the Carpathian flysch succession are complicated. All analysed oils were generated from the Menilite Formation during early and peak stages of the “oil window”. Associated gas is of low-temperature thermogenic origin, sometimes containing an admixture of microbial gas. High-temperature thermogenic gas occurs only in the Polish part of the Silesian Unit.