The Spleleovivarium is a unique space within the city. You enter what was an anti-aircraft refuge in World War II, and you find yourself in what looks like a Karst cave.
Through the efforts and passion of the members of the Speleology Society and the Municipality which provided the space, since 1990 a museum has been set up which is also a study centre. The environment of the Karst cavity is reflected in terms of light and temperature but offers the convenience of being a flat tunnel where one does not need to be roped up.
The interior space is divided into thematic nuclei: speleobotany, cave fauna, geology, geomorphology, palaeontology and urban archaeology.
Animals are observable in aquariums and terrariums set up in a manner that resembles the natural environment.
It is rare indeed to be able to observe a live Olm (Proteus anguinus) without making a serious effort to find one but here you can!
Just as it is difficult to imagine when we walk through the streets of the centre that underneath our feet there are many tunnels that preserve Roman and Medieval remains and the more recent past, but the Speleovivarium is the right place for these experiences.
The studies carried out to better understand the cave fauna are very interesting and much of this research is in collaboration with international research organizations.
1. The Olm (Proteus anguinus). In nature, this salamander is common in the Karst of Gorizia and Trieste, in Slovenia, Istria and Dalmatia.
2. The prints of a Theropod dinosaur that lived 78 million years ago in Istria;
3. Archaeological finds discovered during the dismantling of galleries running across the city and especially below the Colle San Giusto.
