Cave & Karst Science (ISSN 1356-191X)

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Contents of Cave & Karst Science 48(1)

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Cave and Karst Science (iv + 40pp) (PDF 4.1MB)        Individual articles may be available below

GUNN, John and David LOWE (eds.). (2021). Cave and Karst Science 48(1). Buxton: British Cave Research Association. ISSN 1356-191X. iv + 40pp, A4, with photos, maps and diagrams.
This issue has a cover date of 2021 (April) and was published in May 2021.

The Transactions of the British Cave Research Association

Front cover photo (page i) (PDF 414KB)     

by Dave RYALL.
Chris Jewell in Tinkle Tubes, Boreham Cave in the Yorkshire Dales. (Photo: Dave Ryall).

 

Notes for Contributors (page ii) (PDF 266KB)     

 

Contents (p1) (PDF 405KB)     

 

Editorial (p2) (PDF 267KB)     

by John GUNN and David LOWE.

 

Comparison of calthemite and speleothem straw stalactites, and environmental conditions influencing straw diameter (pp3-11) (PDF 1.2MB)     

by Garry K SMITH.
This study investigates environmental conditions that influence the morphology of calthemite straws and draws comparisons with speleothem straws. Calthemite straws are typically deposited beneath buildings, bridges, and other concrete structures from hyperalkaline solution (pH > 9), in contrast to speleothem straws that are deposited by near-neutral to mildly alkaline solutions (pH 7.5–8.5). On average, calthemite straws tend to have a smaller outside diameter range of 3.7–5.4mm compared to speleothem 4.5–6.45mm. Comparisons of straw mass per unit length revealed that on average calthemite straws were 40% the mass of speleothem straws of equivalent outside diameter. The calthemite straws had a much thinner wall thickness and were more fragile to handle. Their fast longitudinal growth (up to 2 mm/day) and thin wall thickness appears to be due to the rapid reaction of atmospheric CO2 with Ca2+ in solution at the drip surface. This results in deposition of CaCO3 around the straw tip, with little CO2 diffusing up the solution canal, thereby lengthening the calthemite straw with limited CaCO3 deposition in the solution canal. Solutions from slower drips have a higher saturation and deposit more CaCO3 per kilogram of solution (e.g. as a stalactite and/or stalagmite), than solutions from straws with faster drip rates. As drip rates and calcium ion saturation of drip solution vary greatly beneath a structure over time and location, the analysis of drip solution is not a reliable method to determine concrete's degradation rate.
Classification: Paper.
Date: Received: 28 October 2020; Accepted: 17 March 2021.
Keywords: concrete, straws, calcium hydroxide, calcium carbonate, calcium ion, calthemite, speleothem, stalactite, pH, hyperalkaline, drip solution.

Bibliograph: SMITH, Garry K. (2021). Comparison of calthemite and speleothem straw stalactites, and environmental conditions influencing straw diameter. Cave and Karst Science 48(1), pp3-11.

 

Conservation of caves and karst, with special reference to areas in the tropics and community participation (pp12-16) (PDF 514KB)     

by David William GILL.
Conservation of caves and karst areas, along with direct local community participation, is examined using a systematic and practical approach. Potential threats and solutions are discussed along with community cooperation that will bring financial benefits to the community via long-term sustainable tourism products. Poaching is the major threat to conservation in sub-tropical and tropical areas, but total involvement from the community will ensure protection in the long term. The concept is one of people's parks, co-managed by the local community and the relevant government agency, who own and administer the area under the specific law or, in some instances, a private concern. The paper is based upon experience of hands-on conservation work on caves and karst areas in the tropics and sub-tropics over an extended period.
Classification: Paper.
Date: Received: 24 June 2020; Accepted: 25 November 2020.

Bibliograph: GILL, David William. (2021). Conservation of caves and karst, with special reference to areas in the tropics and community participation. Cave and Karst Science 48(1), pp12-16.

 

The Elbolton Pot bear – a further Late Glacial bear occurrence in the southeastern Yorkshire Dales (pp17-18) (PDF 492KB)     

by Phillip J MURPHY and Andrew T CHAMBERLAIN.
A radiocarbon date obtained from a partial, juvenile, bear skeleton recovered by cavers confirms that bears were both present and breeding in the Wharfedale area during the Late Glacial/Windermere Interstadial. This study highlights the importance of curating bone finds made by sporting cavers, because they have great potential to contribute to palaeontological, archaeological and palaeoenvironmental studies.
Classification: Report.
Date: Received: 02 September 2020; Accepted: 27 September 2020.

Bibliograph: MURPHY, Phillip J and Andrew T CHAMBERLAIN. (2021). The Elbolton Pot bear – a further Late Glacial bear occurrence in the southeastern Yorkshire Dales. Cave and Karst Science 48(1), pp17-18.

 

British and Irish speleobiology before Darwin (pp19-30) (PDF 1.2MB)     

by Max MOSELEY.
The pre-Darwinian history of British and Irish speleobiology is traced from the folklore era until 1859, within the context of the overall development of the discipline. Sporadic 'scientific' observations of subterranean organisms were made during the Enlightenment period of the 17th and 18th centuries. The first 'well shrimp' known to science was found in London in the early 19th century, though its significance was not perceived immediately. In 1801 The Royal Society of London was instrumental in bringing the iconic olm (Proteus anguinus) from near obscurity within the English-speaking world to the attention of an international audience of naturalists and lay public. The blind, depigmented 'troglobites', discovered on the Continent and in America from the 1830s onwards were known and discussed in the British Isles but not within an evolutionary context. In contrast, blind cave animals were put forward in support of creationist doctrines during the Faith versus Reason conflicts of early Victorian times. The 1850s saw the first, albeit unsuccessful, efforts by creationist naturalists to find similar forms in caves in the British Isles. Their focus was on 'troglobites'; other less-specialized subterranean animals were ignored, although that had not been the case in a key early report from Europe. Meanwhile, several new 'well shrimps' were discovered in England, but the ecological continuity between animals found in wells and those in caves was not yet understood. Finally and briefly, some ways in which pre-Enlightenment and anthropocentric attitudes to caves and their inhabitants influenced the later development of speleobiology are discussed.
Classification: Paper.
Date: Received: 10 November 2020; Accepted: 26 February 2021.
Keywords: Carniola, Crangonyx, Erasmus Darwin, folklore, Genesis, Haliday, Hogan, Jessop, Kirby, Kircher, Leach, Linnean Society, Lister, Murray, Niphargus, olm, Proteus, Royal Society, Schreibers, Scopoli, Slovenia, troglobites, well shrimps, well worms, Zoïs.

Bibliograph: MOSELEY, Max. (2021). British and Irish speleobiology before Darwin. Cave and Karst Science 48(1), pp19-30.

 

Corrigenda (p31) (PDF 501KB)     

by Dan HARRIES.
A note on the cockroach egg cases reported in 'The biota of Siju Cave, Meghalaya, India: a comparison of biological records from 1922 and from 2019' (Cave and Karst Science 47(3), pp 119–130).
Classification: Forum.

 

Short communication (p32) (PDF 442KB)     

by Tony HARRISON.
The 2013 expedition to Yanjin County, Yunnan Province, China.
Classification: Forum.

 

Letter (p33) (PDF 354KB)     

by David W GILL.
A short communication with ref. to 'Evidence for early human visits to, and possible edible-nest swiftlet exploitation of, Deer Cave, Sarawak, Western Borneo. (Cave and Karst Science 47(1), pp 23–25).
Classification: Forum.
Date: Received: 12 September 2020.

 

Letter (p33)  For download see previous item

by Donald MCFARLANE, Joyce LUNDBERG and Guy Van RENTERGEM.
Response to David Gill (see above).
Classification: Forum.
Date: Received: 17 September 2020.

 

31st BCRA Cave Science Symposium. 12 November 2020 (pp34-40) (PDF 1.6MB)     

Hosted online by Northumbria University and the British Geological Survey. Welcome (Prof. John Gunn), and abstracts of the online presentations.
Classification: Forum.

 

Research Fund and Grants (page iii) (PDF 277KB)     

 

Back cover photos (page iv) (PDF 277KB)     

by Jerry WOOLDRIDGE.
Images of Mulu Caves in Sarawak's Gunung Mulu National Park. See contents page for photo captions. (Photos: Jerry Wooldridge).