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Mud Volcanoes of Crimea

Mud volcanoes (salses, macalubas, blyuvaky) — geological formations on the Kerch Peninsula that erupt liquid clay, water, hydrogen sulfide, and natural gas instead of magma. They represent a unique natural phenomenon of Eastern Crimea associated with the geological distinctness of the Kerch Peninsula from the rest of Crimea.

Overview

Mud volcanoes of Crimea are not true magmatic volcanoes, but geological formations erupting a mixture of clay and water (volcanic mud), saturated with hydrogen sulfide, iodine, and bromine. Because of this, the ejected mud is considered curative. Two types exist: salses — depressions in the ground, and macalubas — cone-shaped mud volcanoes. Local informal name for both types is blyuvaky.

Especially powerful eruptions are accompanied by flames (due to natural gas release), thunder, and emissions of rock fragments. The largest eruptions in Crimean history are associated with the Dzhau-Tepe volcano.

Geological Context

From a geological point of view, the Kerch Peninsula is not part of Crimea. Millions of years ago, the strait between the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea existed much further west — at the site of the present-day Ak-Monay Isthmus, while the Kerch and Taman peninsulas formed a single unit. That is why mud volcanoes are equally widespread on both the Kerch and Taman peninsulas.

Bulhanak Group

Near Kerch lies the Bulhanak group of mud volcanoes. It includes:

  • Sopka Obrucheva — highest volcano of the group, 74 meters above sea level.
  • Sopka Vernadskoho
  • Sopka Abikha
  • Sopka Pavlova
  • Sopka Tyshchenka
  • Sopka Andrusova
  • Central Lake — largest salse in Crimea, 25 meters in diameter.

Dzhau-Tepe — Crimean Mini-Etna

The highest mud volcano in Crimea is Dzhau-Tepe (120 m above sea level). The name translates from Crimean Tatar as "Enemy Mountain." In the 17th century, its eruption destroyed a nearby settlement.

Chronology of eruptions:

  • 1909 — most powerful eruption: mud stream 330 m long, 20–30 m wide; 128,000 tons of volcanic mud ejected.
  • March 14, 1914 — eruption with bursts of flame, pillar of black smoke, and thunder heard tens of kilometers away. Lasted about half an hour; the stream of mud caused panic among residents.
  • 1925 — moderate eruption.
  • 1927 — moderate eruption (coinciding in time with the famous 1927 Crimean earthquakes).
  • 1937 — one of the largest eruptions: mud tongue extended 130 m.
  • 1982 — last noticeable eruption.

In 1964, Dzhau-Tepe was declared a natural monument of local significance, and since 1975 — a landscape natural monument of national significance.