GIS analysis

Retention potential of beaver dams for surface water storage in the Czech landscape

Ing. Adam Babuljak, Ing. Miroslav Bauer, Ph.D., Ing. Martin Dočkal, Ph.D., Ing. Petr Koudelka, Ph.D., RNDr. Jitka Uhlíková, Ph.D., Ing. Jan Mokrý, Ing. Aleš Vorel, Ph.D. and prof. Dr. Ing. Tomáš Dostál – 5/2026

The Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) is an important ecosystem engineer that alters the hydrological regime of the landscape through its activities. The aim of this study was to quantify the volume of surface water retained by beaver dams in the Czech landscape and to estimate the potential retention capacity of a selected catchment assuming the maximum predicted extent of beaver colonisation. The main focus of the research was to determine the volume of surface water accumulated behind 150 beaver dams at sites in the Plzeň Region (the Křemelná catchment and ten other selected wetlands) and the inundated area of the associated beaver ponds. GIS analyses based on a combination of precise geodetic data and a digital terrain model were used for the calculations.

Historical water reservoirs – splash dams in the Low Tatras (Slovakia)

Mgr. Jakub Cimbala, doc. et doc. PaedDr. Pavel Hronček, PhD. and doc. PaedDr. Bohuslava Hrončeková Gregorová, PhD. – 2/2026

The paper analyses the development of historical water reservoirs (splash dams) in the Low Tatras region based on the interpretation of maps from the mid-19th century to the present. In the past, splash dams served as part of the system for floating timber down the Hron and Váh rivers. They represented a key hydro-technical element that significantly influenced the hydrological regime of rivers and the formation of the mountain landscape. The identification of historical splash dams was based on the analysis of maps of the 2nd Military Mapping (1836–1852), which were compared with current map data (ZBGIS, Orthophotomap of the Slovak Republic) and verified by field research.