38 Facts About Adriatic Sea

Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula.

The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto to the northwest and the Po Valley.

The countries with coasts on the Adriatic Sea are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Italy, Montenegro, and Slovenia.

Adriatic Sea contains more than 1, 300 islands, mostly located along the Croatian part of its eastern coast.

Tidal movements in the Adriatic Sea are slight, although larger amplitudes are known to occur occasionally.

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The Adriatic Sea's salinity is lower than the Mediterranean's because the Adriatic Sea collects a third of the fresh water flowing into the Mediterranean, acting as a dilution basin.

Adriatic Sea sits on the Apulian or Adriatic Microplate, which separated from the African Plate in the Mesozoic era.

Origins of the name Adriatic are linked to the Etruscan settlement of Adria, which probably derives its name from Illyrian adur 'water, sea'.

Mare Adriaticum generally corresponds to the Adriatic Sea's extent, spanning from the Gulf of Venice to the Strait of Otranto.

Adriatic Sea is a semi-enclosed sea, bordered in the southwest by the Apennine or Italian Peninsula, in the northwest by the Italian regions of Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and in the northeast by Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Albania—the Balkan peninsula.

The Adriatic Sea extends northwest from 40° to 45°47' north, representing the Mediterranean's northernmost portion.

Major rivers discharging into the Adriatic Sea include the Po, Soca, Krka, Neretva, Drin, Bojana, and Vjose.

Adriatic Sea contains more than 1, 300 islands and islets, most along the Adriatic's eastern coast—especially in Croatia, with 1, 246 counted.

The North Adriatic Sea basin, extending between Venice and Trieste towards a line connecting Ancona and Zadar, is only 15 metres deep at its northwestern end; it gradually deepens towards the southeast.

The Middle Adriatic Sea basin is south of the Ancona–Zadar line, with the 270-metre deep Middle Adriatic Sea Pit ( called the Pomo Depression or the Jabuka Pit).

The South Adriatic Basin is similar in many respects to the Northern Ionian Sea, to which it is connected.

Transversely, the Adriatic Sea is asymmetric: the Apennine peninsular coast is relatively smooth with very few islands and the Mount Conero and Gargano promontories as the only significant protrusions into the sea; in contrast, the Balkan peninsular coast is rugged with numerous islands, especially in Croatia.

Such unusually high tides resulting in flooding have been observed elsewhere in the Adriatic Sea, and have been recorded in recent years in the towns of Koper, Zadar and Sibenik as well.

The Middle and South Adriatic Sea Gyres, are significant cyclonic circulation features, with the former being intermittent and the latter permanent.

The distinct seasonal temperature variations, with a longitudinal gradient in the Northern and transversal gradient in the Middle and Southern Adriatic, are attributed to the continental characteristics of the Adriatic Sea: it is shallower and closer to land than are oceans.

The southern Adriatic Sea is subjected to saltier water from the Levantine Basin.

Adriatic Sea is a unique water body in respect of its overall biogeochemical physiognomy.

Unique nature of the Adriatic Sea gives rise to an abundance of endemic flora and fauna.

The Central Adriatic Sea is especially abundant in endemic plant species, with 535 identified species of green, brown and red algae.

Recent studies revealed that cetaceans and other marine megafaunas, that were once thought to be vagrants to Adriatic Sea, migrate and live in the semi-closed sea on larger scales.

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Only a small fraction of the fish found in the Adriatic Sea are attributed to recent processes such as Lessepsian migration, and escape from mariculture.

Biodiversity of the Adriatic Sea is relatively high, and several marine protected areas have been established by countries along its coasts.

Adriatic Sea ecosystem is threatened by excessive input of nutrients through drainage from agricultural land and wastewater flowing from cities; this includes both along its coast and from rivers draining into the sea—especially from the Po River.

Air pollution in the Adriatic Sea Basin is associated with the large industrial centres in the Po River valley and the large industrial cities along the coast.

Settlements along the Adriatic Sea dating to between 6100 and 5900 BC appear in Albania and Dalmatia on the eastern coast, related to the Cardium pottery culture.

High Middle Ages in the Adriatic Sea basin saw further territorial changes, including the Norman conquest of southern Italy ending the Byzantine presence on the Apennine peninsula in the 11th and 12th centuries and the control of a substantial part of the eastern Adriatic coast by the Kingdom of Hungary after a personal union was established between Croatia and Hungary in 1102.

The Adriatic Sea coastline controlled by the Ottoman Empire was reduced by the Congress of Berlin in 1878, through recognition of the independence of the Principality of Montenegro, which controlled the coast south of the Bay of Kotor to the Bojana River.

The Ottoman Empire lost all territories along the Adriatic Sea following the First Balkan War and consequent 1913 Treaty of London that established an independent Albania.

World War I Adriatic Sea Campaign was largely limited to blockade attempts by the Allies and the effort of the Central Powers to thwart the British, French and Italian moves.

Italian fisheries, including those operating outside the Adriatic Sea, employed 60, 700 in the primary sector, including aquaculture.

Adriatic Sea tourism is a significant source of income for these countries, especially in Croatia and Montenegro where the tourism income generated along the Adriatic Sea coast represents the bulk of such income.

Tourism in Adriatic Sea Croatia has recently exhibited greater growth than in the other regions around the Adriatic Sea.

Largest passenger ports in the Adriatic are the Port of Split and ports in Ancona (the largest Italian passenger seaport in the Adriatic).