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Adriatic Sea Facts

Adriatic Sea Facts
The Adriatic Sea is located at the northernmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, bordered by Italy, Greece, Slovenia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, and Croatia. The Adriatic Sea is roughly 53,500 square miles in size, with a maximum width of 120 miles and maximum length of 500 miles. The average depth is 828 feet and the deepest spot is 4,045 feet. More than 3.5 million people live along the shores of the Adriatic Sea and the largest cities on its shoreline include Split, Trieste, Venice, and Bari. There are more than 1,300 islands in the Adriatic Sea. Most of them are found along the coast of Croatia.
Interesting Adriatic Sea Facts:
The Word Adriatic is derived from the early Etruscan settlement Adria. The word is thought to be derived from the word adur, which means sea or water. The Adriatic Sea was once known as Mare Adritaticum.
The Adriatic Sea separates the Balkan Peninsula and the Italian Peninsula, as well as the Apennine Mountains and Dinaric Alps.
The northern basin of the Adriatic Sea is its shallowest portion. The southern basin of the Adriatic Sea is its deepest.
In the Adriatic Sea the tidal movements are considered slight but on occasion they are larger.
The Adriatic Sea has a lower salinity (dissolved salt) than the Mediterranean Sea because it collects one-third of the fresh water that ends up in the Mediterranean Sea.
The Adriatic Sea's surface temperature is roughly 12 degrees Celsius in the winter and 30 degrees Celsius in the summer.
The Adriatic Sea is located on the Adriatic Microplate. This microplate was once part of the African Plate but separated during the Mesozoic era.
The Adriatic Sea has many protected marine areas. These include karst habitats.
The Adriatic Sea has more 7,000 species of flora and fauna. Many are rare and threatened.
The earliest known human settlements along the Adriatic were the Greek, Illyrian, and Etruscan people.
The Adriatic Sea is connected to the Ionian Sea via the Strait of Otranto.
The Adriatic Sea has a variety of different seafloor sediments including relict sand, muddy beds, rocky beds and sandy cove areas.
The bottlenose dolphin can be seen in the eastern Adriatic Sea, and along the Croatian coast there are endangered sea turtles and monk seals.
The ecosystem of the Adriatic Sea is threatened by excessive nutrient run off from agricultural activity. A major source is the Po River, as well as Venice, and ships that discharge into the sea.
Overfishing is a problem in the Adriatic Sea and 120 species are threatened because of it.
Some of the overfished species include Norway lobster, spiny dogfish, monkfish, and blue shark.
Most of the countries bordering the Adriatic Sea are considered major tourist destinations. Some of these include Slovenia, Italy, Montenegro, Croatia, Albania, and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Oil spills are considered a threat to the Adriatic Sea as they would have a major impact on fisheries and tourism. In Croatia alone, more than 1 million people would be without a job if a major oil spill occurred.


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