Quarries
Extraction of stones leaves noticeable traces in the landscape. Quarries, either abandoned or still active, are abundant almost all over the Czech Republic.
The perception of quarries in the landscape has recently changed. They may be beneficial under certain circumstances, for instance if no habitat of natural or historical value is destroyed. A lot of studies have shown that quarries could serve as refuges for some plants and animals that are not able to suvrive in present-day intensively cultivated landscape.
Succession in basalt quarries in the České středohoří has been studied particularly by Jan Novák together with Karel Prach (see Scientific Publications: Novák, Prach 2003, 2010), succession in Moravian limestone quarries has been addressed by Lubomír Tichý and in quarries in the Bohemian Karts by Alena Bartošová.
The course of succession and ecological restoration of most of these sites are summarized in following studies (see Scientific Publications): Prach et al. 2008, 2011, 2013 and Řehounek et al. 2010. Further information could be also found in Jongepierová et al. 2012 and in Živa magazine (Prach et al. 2009, in Czech).
