SNAIL WITH SEMI-TRANSPARENT SHELL DISCOVERED Photograph by Jana Bedek In a paper published on 30 August 2013 by the International Society for Subterranean Biology, Dr Alexander Weigand of Goethe-University Frankfurt, Germany, has described a new species of cave-dwelling snail from the Lukina Jama–Trojama cave system. The new species, Zospeum tholussum, is a…
MEXICO’S GIANT CRYSTAL CAVE Photograph by Alexander Van Driessche Cave of the Crystals or Giant Crystal Cave (Spanish: Cueva de los Cristales) is a cave connected to the Naica Mine 300 meters (980 ft) below the surface in Naica, Chihuahua, Mexico. The main chamber contains giant selenite crystals, and are some of…
THE WAITOMO GLOWWORM CAVES Photograph via waitomo.com The Waitomo Glowworm Caves attraction is a cave at Waitomo on the North Island of New Zealand, known for its population of glowworms, Arachnocampa luminosa. This species is found exclusively in New Zealand. They are around the size of an average mosquito. This cave is…
THE TEMPLE CAVE OF BATU Photograph by TREY RATCLIFF | stuckincustoms.com Batu Caves is a limestone hill which has a series of caves and cave temples in the Gombak district, 13 kilometers (8 mi) north of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It takes its name from the Sungai Batu or Batu River, which flows…
Located 135 meters (443 ft) underground is the famous Wieliczka Salt Mine in southern Poland. Entered into the UNESCO First World Heritage List in 1978, it was also proclaimed a Historical Monument by the President of the Republic of Poland in 1994. The mine is located in the town of Wieliczka and is within…
Photograph by Modagaja on Panoramio Located in the mouth of Banderas Bay are the beautiful Las Marietas Islands, about 22 nautical miles west of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Formed by volcanic activity over thousands of years, the islands are a nationally protected bird sanctuary, also providing shelter for countless marine species. After years of scientific…
KAMCHATKA ICE CAVE, RUSSIA Photograph by Marc Szeglat @ vulkane.net In the incredible photo by Marc Szeglat (taken Sept. 12, 2012), we see a surreal-looking ice cave on the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia. It was formed by a stream flowing from the hot springs associated with the Mutnovsky Volcano. This stream flows…
ASH CAVE AT HOCKING HILLS Photograph by Bryan Olesen on Flickr In this beautiful photo by Bryan Olesen, we see the popular Ash Cave in Hocking Hills, Ohio. Located in the southernmost reaches of Hocking Hills, Ash Cave is the largest recess cave in the state of Ohio. The horseshoe-shaped cave measures…
Soreq Cave, also known as Avshalom Cave or Stalactite Cave, is a 5,000 m2 cave on the western side of Mt. Ye’ela, in the Judean hills of Israel. Discovered by accident in May 1968 while quarrying with explosives, it is 83m (272 ft) long, 60m (197 ft) wide, and 15m (49ft) high. Like other…
Ordinskaya or the Orda Cave is the longest underwater cave in Russia. Accoridng to the Orda Cave Awareness Project it is the first and only underwater gypsum excursion cave in the world. The two founders of the project are Vitya Lyagushkin, a famous underwater photographer, journalist and dive-instructor; and Bogdana Vashchenko, a diving journalist.…