Underground spaces in Bosonožský hájek Nature Reserve and their geoeducation importance

Abstract

Bosonožský hájek Natural Reserve (Brno, South Moravia) is a very important site from the Earth Science point of view, however, its geodiversity values have been rather overlooked and omitted in the past (the object of legal protection is the occurrence of well-preserved forest ecosystems and endangered species). In the last decades, a series of field work and geophysical measurements has been carried out and the Earth Science phenomena have been identified and described here. These are represented by a dense network of gullies that developed in Pleistocene loess and that are both of natural and anthropogenic origin (some gullies probably developed along the old paths) and specific underground spaces (so called dugouts). Until now, the dugouts in South Moravia have been investigated mainly by archaeologists and those in Bosonožský hájek NR have not been described in detail yet. This brief contribution brings new information about three underground landforms and their possible relationship to the age and development of the gullies. The possibility of different interpretations of the origin of these specific landforms can be considered an opportunity in the field of Earth Science (geosciences) education and as an interesting complement of tourist and recreational activities on site.