HYDROGEOLOGICAL MAP OF LESSINI MOUNTAINS ... - CC-WaterS

CARTA IDROGEOLOGICA DEI MONTI LESSINI - HYDROGEOLOGICAL MAP OF LESSINI MOUNTAINS
3.2.2 Covolo di Camposilvano
Covolo di Camposilvano (fig. 16) is the most interesting example of collapse doline found in the
Lessini Mountains. It is a spectacular and very peculiar karst cave generated by the collapse of a
great doline set on Biancone, Rosso Ammonitico and oolitic limestones of S. Vigilio Group. The
entrance of the cave is at an altitude of 1204 m, the global drop is 83 m, the diameter is 60 m and
the global development ranges for 130 m.
Globally, the Covolo is a set of karst caves consisting of many rooms that form a complex system
originated by the karst processes connected with water circulation between layers.
The main cavern sometimes works as a “trap” for cold air: the considerable temperature difference
from external air may sometimes result in ice formations in spring, which may even last throughout
the year, or in the development of condensation mists.
Not far from the karst cave lies a small local museum (fig. 20) preserving interesting fossil remains
and pre-historic findings that have been found nearby, including both mineral and fossils, either
local or from other places. In particular, the Covolo area, which was already settled by humans in
the Neolithic age, is an important deposit of Quaternary fossils, with bone finds from holocenic
Cervus sp. and Bos taurus.
Figure 20: Shark vertebrae and ammonite fossils at the entrance into the Museum of Camposilvano
4 GEOLOGY
4.1 Stratigraphical succession
The Lessini Mountains mainly consist of carbonate sedimentary rocks dating back to the Mesozoic
and Tertiary periods. Cretaceous-Jurassic lithotypes crop out in the northern sector, while the
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