Montenegro is a mountainous country where more than 50% of the land is more than 1,000 m above sea level. There are two mountain systems: the Dinaric Alps and the Prokletije Alps. In the Dinaric Alps the following mountain zones stand out: the Western Mountain zone (coastline), the Mid-Mountain zone and the Northeastern zone. The Prokletije Alps are divided into two zones by the valley of the Lim River and display different orographic, geological and other characteristics in comparison to mountains in the Dinaric system. In the Western and Mid-Mountain zone of the Dinaric Alps, carbonate rocks of Mesozoic age that exceed 2 km in thickness in some places prevail. The Northeastern zone consists of igneous and metamorphic rocks. The Prokletije Alps are very heterogeneous in composition, playing home to a high geo- and biodiversity, as is the case in the overall mountainous area in Montenegro. The mountains have a diverse climate with extreme values of distinct climate elements depending on the distance from the sea and elevation. Maximal annual precipitation on slopes in the Western Mountain zone exceeds 9,000 mm, whilst the average annual precipitation is above 5,000 mm. The mean air temperature in the highest parts of Montenegro is about 0 ℃. The domination of carbonate rocks in mountains prejudices their hydrological properties. Hence, the mountains are dry and commonly waterless. However, in many places in the mountainous areas there are allogenic rivers that have incised canyons of over 1,000 m in depth. The basins of a number of recent mountain lakes were formed by glacial erosion, while at Mt. Durmitor the recent glacier–Debeli Namet–still survives. In the mountain relief, karst relief forms dominate. These include a number of poljes, uvalas, dry valleys and frequent occurrences of holokarst. Glaciokarst reliefs are also noteworthy and typical in mountain areas. There are a number of caves whose depth exceeds 1,000 m and reach a maximal length of 17 km. At the highest levels there are preserved tool marks of Pleistocene glaciation displayed by a number of cirques, basins and moraines. These forms owe their origin primarily to cirque, valley and plateau glaciers that covered more than 50% of the mountain area during the most intensive glaciation. Diverse recent periglacial and colluvial reliefs have also evolved on the mountains. A striking geodiversity has supported the development of a rich biodiversity in the mountainous areas, which host a great variety of endemic and relic flora and fauna taxa. In order to protect and conserve the rich biodiversity, there are four national parks and a number of protected areas in the mountainous areas of Montenegro.

Mountains of Montenegro

章节
出版模式：

开放获取
发表日期：

2026年

查看全文

Predrag Djurović,
Mirela Djurović

摘要

Montenegro is a mountainous country where more than 50% of the land is more than 1,000 m above sea level. There are two mountain systems: the Dinaric Alps and the Prokletije Alps. In the Dinaric Alps the following mountain zones stand out: the Western Mountain zone (coastline), the Mid-Mountain zone and the Northeastern zone. The Prokletije Alps are divided into two zones by the valley of the Lim River and display different orographic, geological and other characteristics in comparison to mountains in the Dinaric system. In the Western and Mid-Mountain zone of the Dinaric Alps, carbonate rocks of Mesozoic age that exceed 2 km in thickness in some places prevail. The Northeastern zone consists of igneous and metamorphic rocks. The Prokletije Alps are very heterogeneous in composition, playing home to a high geo- and biodiversity, as is the case in the overall mountainous area in Montenegro. The mountains have a diverse climate with extreme values of distinct climate elements depending on the distance from the sea and elevation. Maximal annual precipitation on slopes in the Western Mountain zone exceeds 9,000 mm, whilst the average annual precipitation is above 5,000 mm. The mean air temperature in the highest parts of Montenegro is about 0 ℃. The domination of carbonate rocks in mountains prejudices their hydrological properties. Hence, the mountains are dry and commonly waterless. However, in many places in the mountainous areas there are allogenic rivers that have incised canyons of over 1,000 m in depth. The basins of a number of recent mountain lakes were formed by glacial erosion, while at Mt. Durmitor the recent glacier–Debeli Namet–still survives. In the mountain relief, karst relief forms dominate. These include a number of poljes, uvalas, dry valleys and frequent occurrences of holokarst. Glaciokarst reliefs are also noteworthy and typical in mountain areas. There are a number of caves whose depth exceeds 1,000 m and reach a maximal length of 17 km. At the highest levels there are preserved tool marks of Pleistocene glaciation displayed by a number of cirques, basins and moraines. These forms owe their origin primarily to cirque, valley and plateau glaciers that covered more than 50% of the mountain area during the most intensive glaciation. Diverse recent periglacial and colluvial reliefs have also evolved on the mountains. A striking geodiversity has supported the development of a rich biodiversity in the mountainous areas, which host a great variety of endemic and relic flora and fauna taxa. In order to protect and conserve the rich biodiversity, there are four national parks and a number of protected areas in the mountainous areas of Montenegro.