Hydrology of Surface Water and Climate Characteristics of Montenegro

Hydrological characteristics of surface watercourses will be presented in this paper as primarily determined by the geomorphological and hydrogeological properties of the terrain. Hereby only the general hydrographic properties of the main watercourses will be shown. The main hydrographic properties of Montenegro are presented by two, approximately equal catchment areas, where water flows through the surface and underground paths towards the Danube River basin (7260 km2 or 52.5%) and the Adriatic Sea basin (6560 km2 or 47.5%). According to the world standards, both catchment areas are rich in water (average water). However, a significant part of Montenegrin surface (about 60%) belongs to Dinaric karst area, which is without permanent streams and in which precipitation (liquid and solid) runs towards watercourses or the sea. Bearing in mind the fact that even 95.3% of watercourses in Montenegro are formed on its territory, i.e. with its source and catchment area on its own territory, it can rightly be said that water is our greatest natural resource, even though it is spatially and temporally very heterogeneous. Hydrological and hydrogeological factors have one of the most significant roles in the formation of underground morphological forms. The occurrence of underground morphological forms (caves, pits) in karst terrains, which can be found in most parts of the Montenegrin territory, is caused by the sinking of certain amounts of surface water and their movement through underground channels and caverns. Thus, the sparsest river network occurs in the area with the highest amount of precipitation (e.g. Orjen, Lovćen), while it is the densest in the area with the lowest amount of precipitation (northeastern part of Montenegro). This spatial distribution caused the development of a large number of speleological objects in terrains without surface runoff and direction of movement of sinking waters towards the main erosion bases (Lake Skadar and the Adriatic Sea). Another hydrological characteristic, related to the significant spatial and temporal unevenness of water resources throughout the year, is that yields of some rivers (e.g. Zeta, Morača) and karst springs (e.g. Crnojevića River) are often several hundred times higher during the rainy season than in summer (dry) months. Montenegro is a very complex climatic area characterized by pronounced variations in time and space, primarily thanks to its geographical position, proximity to the sea (Adriatic and Mediterranean) and orographic features—mountain ranges, which prevent maritime influences from penetrating deeper into the interior of the land, canyon valleys, etc.