Berki-pusztai No 5 Cavity

The Berki-pusztai No 5 cavity is a cave located in the Danube–Ipoly National Park, in Sóskút.

Description

The Berki-pusztai No 5 cavity is situated on the Érd–Ercsi backland, at the edge of Sóskút (outskirts), near the M7 motorway. On the north side of the Benta stream, the hill slope lying between Sóskút and the motorway on the eastern side contains the Berki-pusztai cavities, of which the Berki-pusztai No 2 cavity, the Berki-pusztai No 3 cavity, the Berki-pusztai No 4 cavity and the Berki-pusztai No 5 cavity lie side by side at the base of a large rock collapse. The rock collapse’s western side, close to the surface, holds the Berki-pusztai No 5 cavity. Approaching the cave from the east is made difficult by an acacia thicket covering the hill slope, therefore it is advisable to visit from the north (from above), where it is easier to walk along the forest edge.

This simple, 5 m long tube-shaped cavity is separated from the surface by a rock frame less than 1 meter thick. The formation of the cavity involved a significant preformational role of the rock material’s layering. The rock material (Zámori Gravel Formation) here is a sand‑binding conglomerate, a gravelly sandstone, in which the grains are mainly quartz and quartzite. There is no formation in the cave; the straw deposited on its floor testifies that the cave is used by some small mammal for nesting. No equipment is required to view the easily accessible cave, which can be visited without permission.

The cave also occurs in the literature as Berki-pusztai 5.sz. cavity (Gazda 2005).

Research history

In the manuscript written by Árpád Halász on 5 February 1964 it is stated that the Berki‑pusztai cavities are located in Sóskút (Pest County), from Sóskút to the east, on the low backland between the Pázmándi field and the Mill ditch. From Berki‑puszta (Tárnok) to the north‑east, about 2 km away, between the triangulation points 131 and 162, on the low hill about 1.5 km long that runs from Sóskút to Berki‑puszta in the DK–NE direction, the caves are found. The cavities are on the east‑west side of the hill. (The data were determined by István Halász based on the map titled Sóskút and its surroundings (scale 1:50 000) published in 1951.) The cavities can be reached from Érd in about 30 minutes by the Sóskút bus, which goes to Ötházpuszta. It is also possible to go by bus to Sóskút, from where, walking across varied terrain along the picturesque Benta stream valley, the caves can be reached on foot in about 1 hour.)

During a field walk carried out in search of karst phenomena, the caves were discovered on July 26, 1942 by Árpád Halász. The investigation of the spread of the karstic limestone D led to the area. The cavities have no name and are not mentioned in the literature. Árpád Halász proposes that, since there are several cavities and they are near Berki-puszta, the name Berki-pusztai cavities should be used for the cavity group. From a speleological point of view it is worthwhile to study the genetics of the cavities. The caves formed in a Levantine, carbonate‑bearing pebble conglomerate, which generally consists of quartz, sandstone and a little limestone material of 2–6 cm diameter. The pebbles are well rounded. This rock here is thick‑bedded, layered, with cross‑beds observable in places. Due to insufficient excavation Halász could not measure the direction and angle of the bedding dip. The cavities formed in the loosely cemented conglomerate both by deflation and by the erosive action of rainwater along cracks.

Under the conglomerate rocks there are cave‑like depressions that extend longitudinally. Their length usually varies between 2–5 m, their height 0.5–1 m, and their width 5–6 m. The ceilings of the crawl‑through cavities are flat. Most flat cavities are on the ÉK side. A large cave could not have formed in the pebble conglomerate unsuitable for karstification. Árpád Halász descended into one narrow shaft, but after 2 m the passage became so narrow that it could not be traversed. Many small mammal bones were found in the cavities (indicating the presence of foxes), but no archaeological finds. A bat flew out of one cavity. Since the bat was not seen repeatedly, it probably only stayed temporarily in the cave.

The cancellation and erosion played a role in the formation of the morphological forms of the Berki-pusztai cavities. The study of the stone chambers provides new data for understanding the formation problems of caves not formed by karst processes and draws attention to the collapse and erosional origin cavities of the Levante formations in the vicinity of Sóskút. Because of their small size, the cavities have no economic or tourism significance. From a tourism perspective they are worth visiting, because we will always gladly recall the picturesque landscape of the Várda stream valley. From the hilltop there is a beautiful view over the surrounding gently rolling Transdanubian landscape. In good weather the peaks of the Velence Hills can also be seen from here. It is worthwhile to study the Berki-pusztai cavities (especially from a speleological point of view). The cavities must be surveyed, accurately mapped, and the caves photographed. Their scientific significance lies in the observation of subsidence phenomena. They provide useful data for the forthcoming cave register. The manuscript includes a site map showing the geographical location of the Berki-pusztai cavities (M = 1:25,000). The map, on which four cave signs can be seen at the Pázmándi field, was drawn in 1964 by Árpád Halász.