Karst Evolution of the Garraf Massif (Barcelona, Spain): Doline Formation, Chronology and Archaeo-palaeontological Archives

Karst landscape evolution has been widely studied in recent years on karst plateaus, but the use of dating methods has not usually been possible owing to a lack of data. The intensely karstified GarrafMassif, however, presents large solution dolines and several shafts that contain archaeological and palaentological remains that can be used for determining the chronological framework of the karstification processes. These sites have been dated, using various techniques, and the resulting data combined with evidence from previous geomorphological studies. The results allow the authors to define the pattern and timing of the evolution of karst morphologies in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula. They have proposed a simple five-stage geomorphological model of the evolution of the Garraf dolines located on the plateau, between the Middle to Upper Miocene and the Holocene. The study also provides important information for analyzing landscape history in high plateaus of karst regions.