Study visit in Kamenjak

Date: 30.09.2023

 

The pilot site in Croatia includes a significant landscape Lower Kamenjak and Medulin Archipelago with an area of 424 ha. The peninsula is 3.500 meters long, between 500 and 1500 meters wide, with 11 uninhabited islets and 30 bays with reach biodiversity. The target habitats of Nature 2000 are the eastern sub-Mediterranean dry grasslands), pseudo-steppe with grasses and annuals, the Mediterranean maquis dominated by junipers, and the rocks and cliffs of Mediterranean coasts vegetated with endemic species such as sea lavender (Limonium spp.). Some parts of the area face problems of over-tourism (almost 1.000.000 visitors during the summer season), car parking problems, human-wildlife conflicts, and littering. UNIZA and UNIPR performed surveys in this coastal area using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles as well as different ground scanning and imaging to find a suitable Data Acquisition Protocol and toolbox to find optimal data acquisition over coastal areas and get reliable data. The data will help to show which places are most affected by tourists and require further analysis and special attention from the management of this protected area. The cooperation of these three partners will continue for further evaluation.