Going Batty

Going Batty
By:  Cave Spelunking

Bats are called trogloxenes.  Trogloxenes are animals that live part of their lives in caves.  Bats are strange-looking creatures and have been the subject of many horror stories.  They're associated with Halloween and witches and ghouls and goblins and things that go bump in the night.  But bats have a bad reputation that isn't really deserved.

Okay, I admit, bats aren't ever going to win any beauty contest, and they really are weird looking.  But the truth is that we all need bats.  Some bats eat insects.  Without bats, our world would soon be overrun with all kinds of insects.  Bats also are pollinators of plants that bloom at night.  Without bats, we wouldn't have bananas, cashews, mangos, or figs, because bees only work during daylight hours.  Bats pollinate these plants.

Some bats eat fruit, pollen, and nectar.  These bats are essential to the survival of the world's rain forests.

There are 46 different species of bats in the United States.  Most of these (2/3) use caves or structures that resemble caves like abandoned mines.  Bats give birth to their young and raise them in caves during the summer months; and during the winter months, bats hibernate in caves.  Humans have encroached upon the bat's living space to the point that some bat species are endangered.

There's one thing that all spelunkers have in common, and that is a great respect for Mother Nature and the world that we live in.  They are conservationists (although they might not identify themselves as such); they care about the Earth and the things that live on it and in it. That's why conscientious cavers avoid caves that are being used by hibernating bats during the winter months as well as during summer months to protect the mommy bats and their young.


Rock On & Keep Spelunking...
Cave Spelunking.

Caving Hazards

Caving Hazards
By:  Cave Spelunking

Caving isn't the safest way to spend your day off.  If you want "safe," you could make like a couch potato and take up origami.  It won't be as much fun, but the biggest hazard in origami is a paper cut.


Caving does have hazards, but most caving accidents and injuries are preventable.  The most common caving injuries are caused by trips and falls and falling rocks.  Injuries can also occur when cavers get lost, or suffer from dehydration or hypothermia.  Here's how to avoid accidents and injuries:

Tripping & Falling:  Most tripping and falling cave accidents happen near the end of the caving trip rather than at the beginning.  At the beginning of a caving adventure, the cavers are very aware of their surroundings and they are fresh therefore they are sure-footed.  As the caving expedition goes on,
cavers begin to lose focus and get tired. That's when tripping and falling most often occurs. The trick is frequent rest periods and eating high-energy foods as well as drinking plenty of fluids.

Falling Rocks:  Rockfall is the second-leading cause of caving injuries. Caves aren't solid rock. If you look around, you will see loose rocks lying around everywhere. They're there because they fell from above. First, a good helmet is essential, and then awareness of your surroundings is vital.  If there are loose rocks in the area where you are, there's a very good chance that rocks are going to fall.  Avoiding rockfall zones is the surest way to prevent falling rock injuries.
Lost:  A cavers' worst fear is getting lost, and it can happen even to the best of them.  First, stay with your group.  Second, pick out landmarks at each intersection.  If you get lost, stay put and wait to be found. 

Dehydration:  Dehydration happens more frequently than you might imagine. Drink plenty of water and do so frequently.

Hypothermia:  It's a lot easier to prevent hypothermia than it is to treat it.  Wear layered clothing that is of the proper weight for the temperature of the cave that you are exploring.

Rock On & Keep Spelunking...
Cave Spelunking.

Underwater Caves

Underwater Caves
By:  Cave Spelunking



Caves exist all over the world.  They exist in mountains and in valleys.  They exist in frozen regions of the earth and in the hottest deserts.  Caves also exist underwater, either totally or partially.  Underwater caves are some of the most fascinating places on the planet.  They are also some of the most dangerous caves on the planet for cavers to explore.

Cave diving became very popular in the 1970s in the United States — and during that decade, about 100 cavers were killed attempting it.  The problem was that interest was high, but information and training opportunities were nearly nonexistent.
Sheck Exley was the first and best-known cave diver in the United States.  He began his cave-diving career in Florida when he was only 16 years old.  He would continue his cave diving career for the next 29 years.  He made over 4,000 dives and is one of only seven divers in history to successfully make a cave dive below 800 feet.  Sheck Exley died doing what he loved to do when he was only 45 years old.  He was trying to dive to a depth of 1,000 feet.

Cave diving is a dangerous sport, but it is one that draws cavers like honey draws flies.  Today there are strict and enforced rules concerning cave diving.  Divers must have proof of their level of training in order to be allowed to cave dive in the United States.
Much of the focus of cave diving clubs and organizations today is focused more on training, exploration, public awareness, and cave conservation than on simple adventure and pushing the envelope for the thrill of it.

There are cave diving venues all over the world. Northern Florida is the most popular venue in the United States, but cave diving can be done in the Bahamas, the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Brazil.

Rock On & Keep Spelunking...
Cave Spelunking.

What's Under Alaska?

What's Under Alaska?
 By:  Cave Spelunking

Alaska is a land of extremes.  Most often when people think of Alaska, they think of extreme cold and the extremes of daylight in the summer months and dark in the winter months.  But there's another Alaska extreme that's less well known.  That extreme is the number of caves that lay beneath it.

Volunteer cavers, attached to the Forest Service, are working hard to map the amazing cave systems that have been found.  In the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest in America, visitors are invited to feast their eyes on some of the wonders of nature that abound, like eagles, bears, and spawning salmon.  The vistas of this wild land are breathtaking.  But, as they say, "you ain't seen nuttin' yet!" That's just what's on top of the ground.  Wait until you see what's UNDER the ground!
So far, more than 600 caves have been found and charted in the Tongass National Forest.  That is probably only a very small fraction of the number that are actually there.
The temperature in Alaska can be a pleasant 80 in midsummer (or even higher), but the temperature dips well below zero during the winter months.  But underneath Alaska, the temperature remains a constant 40 degrees. That might not sound like a really comfortable temperature, but as compared to the temperatures above the ground, it's wonderful!

If you ever have the opportunity to visit the caves of Alaska, you'll never regret going.  You'll see moon milk — a lot of it.  You'll also crawl through openings so narrow they look impossible to get through and then you suddenly see a 15-foot drop right in front of you that drops into a silo-shaped room — and the wonders just keep coming!

Rock On & Keep Spelunking...
Cave Spelunking.

Troglobites

Troglobites
By:  Cave Spelunking

Can you imagine living in a totally dark environment your entire life?  That is exactly what troglobites do.  Troglobite is an all-inclusive name that defines a group of insects, animals, and fish that live deep within the bowels of the earth in caves that no ray of sunlight ever has ever penetrated or ever will penetrate.

Many troglobites are completely unique to only one cave. These little creatures exist nowhere else on (or in) the Earth.  They've evolved and developed the attributes necessary to not only live but thrive and multiply in the very specific and entirely unique environment of ONE cave.
Troglobites have highly developed senses of smell, taste, and vibration detection.  Those are the senses that are needed to live in a world of total darkness.

While the senses of smell, taste, and vibration detection have gotten stronger, sight has disappeared entirely.  There's not much point of eyesight in total darkness.  There isn't even any point of having eyes that can't be used to see.  So Mother Nature developed the senses that would allow troglobites to exist in darkness and removed totally useless sight.  Most troglobites don't just have blind eyes; they have no eyes at all.
In the animal kingdom, coloring has a purpose.  Sometimes the coloring of animals is used to make them less easily seen by other animals that would have them for lunch.  However, in the depths of a cave, where there is no light, color has no use at all.  So Mother Nature deemed color unnecessary.  Most troglobites are albino — that is, they have no skin pigment and thus no color at all.

The fish, salamanders, crayfish, insects, and spiders that have adapted and live out their entire lives in total darkness are of particular interest to biologists as they provide insights into biological processes and evolution.

Rock On & Keep Spelunking...
Cave Spelunking.