Subterranea 33

Disponible online: Subterranea 33

The second deepest cave in the World became deeper

An ongoing joint expedition of caving clubs from several Siberian sities to Sarma Cave in the Arabika Massif (Western Caucasus), led by Pavel Rudko, has reported that the cave has been pushed 60 m below the previous deepest point (-1760 m) reached last year. This firmly establishes Sarma Cave as the second deepest cave in the world with depth of 1830 m, following Krubera Cave located in the same massif, which has been explored this August to -2197 m by the Ukrainian expedition.




The third place holds Snezhnaya Cave in the nearby Bzybsky Massif, with depth of 1760 m.

Info: Speleogenesis

International Symposium on the importance of bats as bioindicators

There is growing alarm and a great degree of uncertainty among scientists and governments over the possible catastrophic effects of climate change, combined with the destruction and degradation of natural habitats and the high present rates of biodiversity loss. Given the complexity of ecosystems and their biological communities, it is not easy to directly assess the health of natural environments and how it changes over time. Scientists therefore use particular taxa that show measurable responses to these changes as indicators of the state and quality of the environment. These “bioindicators” should ideally reflect the responses of a wide range of taxa and thus inform about the functionality of the whole ecosystem.

While insects, birds and aquatic macroinvertebrates are common bioindicator groups, comparatively much less work has been done on the use of bats as bioindicators. However, several studies suggest that bats’ great taxonomic, ecological and trophic diversity, high sensitivity to temperature changes and to habitat deterioration, geographic ubiquity and good population numbers could indeed make bats excellent indicators of environmental change.

For bats to be useful bioindicators, bat monitoring programs should be cost-efficient, reliable and sufficiently standardized to allow large-scale studies and comparison of results over time and between geographical areas. Fortunately, new technologies such as acoustic monitoring and advances in data storage and sharing are developing rapidly, also in the context of bat monitoring.

We believe it is therefore an ideal time to compile and integrate current developments on bats as bioindicators of environmental change, to contrast experiences on bat monitoring worldwide and to open up new ideas for developing more successful bat monitoring schemes. With this goal in mind, this symposium will bring together international experts in climate change, bioindication and biomonitoring. While the main focus of the Symposium will be on bats, discussions will benefit from experiences made by monitoring programs of other taxa, such as insects and birds. More than serving as a simple exchange of ideas, the Symposium will encourage contributors to participate in the production of a joint publication that will summarize the state of the art regarding bats and bioindication and discuss the pros, cons and future perspectives of current and projected bat monitoring programs.

The Organization Commitee

More info: BATS

New world record, Krubera-Voronja - 2197 m

The Ukranian cavediver Gennady Samokhin

The deepest cave in the world (Krubera Cave) became 6 m deeper

"Depth of the deepest cave in the world, Krubera (Voronya) Cave in the Arabika Massif, Western Caucasus, became 6 m greater, as established in August 10th by a dive of the ukrainian caver Gennady Samokhin in the terminal sifon in the cave’s Main Branch.

The depth of the reference survey station near the water table of the terminal sifon is 2145 m. During the Ukrainian Speleological Association expedition in 2009, Gennady Samokhin reached depth of 46 m in the sifon, which established the world cave depth record at -2191 m. Now he has reached the point at six meters deeper than in the previous attempt, at the total depth of 2197 m.

The ongoing international expedition to Krubera Cave, with more than 50 members from 11 nations, is organized by the Ukrainian Speleological Association within the framework of the “Call of the Abyss” project, run since 2000."

by Alexander Klimchouck in Speleogenesis

 

Therion 5.3.10 released

Therion is a complete package which processes survey data and generates maps or 3D models of caves.

A new version (5.3.10) has been released and is available here.

Therion solves the most annoying problem of cave cartography – how to keep a map of large and complicated cave system always up-to-date. 

Main features include:

Complete maps with all the detail. No additional ink stroke is needed.

• Maps are dynamic, always up-to-date – i.e. they are automatically re-drawn after loop closure, blunder fix, scale or symbol set change
• 3D models are created using 2D maps

It runs on wide variety of platforms: Linux, Windows, Mac OS X. It is completely free, released under the terms of GNU GPL, with source code available. It doesn't require any other commercial software to run.

The latest version includes following additions/bug fixes:
Therion:
* full OSGB grid coverage (e.g. cs OSGB:ST)
* added New Zealand symbol set (NZSS, thanks to Bruce Mutton)
* updated UIS symbol set (thanks to Bruce Mutton)
* updated English translation (thanks to Bruce Mutton)
* added te reo Maori translation (thanks to Kyle Davis)

Loch:
* added checkbox that enables/disables surface lighting (Scene->Surface)

Source: Therion

Info: KarstWorlds

Cavernas, rituais e religião

Cavernas, rituais e religião - Sumário
Luiz Travassos, Edgard Magalhães e Elvis Barbosa
2011 / 441p. / 40,00 / 15x22 cm
ISBN: 978.85.7455.241-5


O presente livro retrata as relações entre o homem e as cavernas, através de autores nacionais e estrangeiros, reunindo trabalhos relacionados aos rituais e às crenças Pré-colombianas e indígenas na América do Norte, Central e do Sul, no Caribe e no Brasil, aos rituais Pagãos da Antiguidade Clássica na Europa, à crença Budista no Tibet, ao Islamismo nos Bálcãs, à religião Católica na Europa e no Brasil, bem como às religiões de matriz africana.

More info: uesc.br/editora

boletim eletrónico SBE Notícias nº 234

Boletim eletrónico SBE Notícias (edição nº 234 - 01/08/2012).

Esta edição traz as seguintes matérias:

- Terminou o 6º Encontro Mineiro de Espeleologia;

- SBE realizou workshop em Belo Horizonte sobre fundamentos para conservação de cavernas;

- CECAV apresenta Plano de conservação para cavernas do São Francisco;

- Carste divulga síntese do workshop de espeleometria;

- Pesquisadores descobrem nova espécie de morcego em Sergipe;

- Caverna revela registros antigos de animais domésticos;

- Apresentação dos resultados do PROAPE;

- Governador inaugura centro de visitantes Gruta do Limoeiro ES;

- Caverna de Portugal recebe sensor de CO2;

- Publicado artigo sobre morcego e cavernas;

- Foto do leitor: Pedra do Capacete - Paraíba.

O boletim é editado em formato PDF no link:

http://www.cavernas.org.br/sbenoticias/SBENoticias_234.pdf

Cave Life Of The Virginias: A field guide to commonly encountered species

By Daniel Fong, Megan Porter, and Michael Slay. Published by the Biology section of the National Speleological Society. 42 pp. Spiral Bound, laminated. Released at the 2012 NSS convention in Lewisburg. Photo shows authors autographing copies at Speleobooks convention store.

 

More info: SpeleoBooks

Speleo Austria 2012

As part of the annual convention of both the German and Austrian national caving associations, the Bad Mitterndorf Caving Club (VHO) will be holding an international speleological meeting from 12th to 19th August 2012.The convention location will be Bad Mitterndorf, Styria, Austria.


From 12th to 15th August there will be f ield trips into the caves and karst areas of the Totes Gebirge and Dachstein mountains. From 16th to 19th August, the programme of events will conclude with fiel d trips and lectures and also an exhibition focusing on 100 years of speleology in the Styrian Salzkammergut.

http://www.hoehle.at/homepage/

SBE Notícias nº 233

Boletim eletrônico SBE Notícias (edição nº 233 - 21/07/2012).

Esta edição traz as seguintes matérias:

- AKAKOR apresenta expedição Terras Altas 2012 na USP;
- Começou o 6º EMESPE;
- Expedição desvenda cavernas de cristal na Ucrânia;
- Justiça preserva cavernas em Minas Gerais;
- Caverna tem entrada em forma de avião e vira bar militar;
- Parque Nacional da Furna Feia continua fechado para o público;
- Ferramentas de pedra dão pista sobre os primeiros habitantes das Américas;
- Programa Terra de Minas apresenta cavernas do Parque do Sumidouro;
- Good News divulga o Parque Nacional Cavernas do Peruaçu (MG);
- Romaria do Bom Jesus da Lapa de Terra Ronca;
- Foto do leitor: Caverna de Santana (SP-41).

O boletim é editado em formato PDF no link:

http://www.cavernas.org.br/sbenoticias/SBENoticias_233.pdf

Nuevo P7 ARGOS micra "µ"

Tras mas de 2 años de intensa actividad epeleologica con el frontal P7 ARGOS y con mucho esfuerzo, diseño y dedicación, ha llegado la hora de presentarles en nuevo sistema de iluminación del ARGOS TEAM.
Se trata del nuevo P7 ARGOS micra "µ "

El nuevo sistema de iluminación P7µ cumple con creces todas las expectativas de su hermano mayor P7 Argos, ademas de incluir una serie de mejoras.


Algunas de ellas saltan a la vista, como su reducido tamaño que con sus 60mm de diámetro y 28mm de grosor se convierte en uno de los frontales mas pequeños del mercado. Solo de esta manera es posible que consiga llegar a pesar tan solo 135 gr, minimizando así el cansancio y la pesadez del espeleología.


Mas info: Argos Team

Fundamentos para Legislação Espeleológicas

A Sociedade Brasileira de Espeleologia convida todos para o 2º Workshop ‘Fundamentos para Legislação Espeleológicas’, dia 21 de julho a partir das 9 horas no Museu de Ciências Naturais - PUC Minas (Rua Dom José Gaspar, 290 - Coração Eucarístico, Belo Horizonte - MG).

O objetivo é ampliar o debate sobre os fundamentos que deveriam nortear a legislação espeleológica, sempre com apresentação de especialistas com diferentes visões sobre o tema, seguidas de debate.

APRESENTAÇÕES:

Conservação do patrimônio espeleológico frente às mudanças na legislação

por Jocy Brandão Cruz

Bacharel em Geografia pela Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, trabalha exclusivamente com espeleologia desde 1999 e atualmente chefia o Centro Nacional de Pesquisa e Conservação de Cavernas do Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Natureza (CECAV/ICMBIO).

Fundamentos físicos para legislação espeleológica

por Luis Beethoven Piló

Graduado em Geografia pela Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (1989) e doutorado em Geografia Física pela Universidade de São Paulo (1998). Pós-doutoramento pelo Instituto de Biociências da USP (2004). É membro do Grupo Bambuí de Pesquisas Espeleológicas. Tem experiência nas áreas de geomorfologia, espeleologia, pedologia e geoarqueologia. Atualmente é consultor ambiental especializado em terrenos cársticos.

Estratégias para conservação de cavernas

por Clayton Ferreira Lino

Graduado em Arquitetura pela Universidade Mackenzie é Presidente do Conselho Nacional da Reserva da Biosfera da Mata Atlântica e membro fundador e conselheiro de várias ONGs. Espeleólogo desde 1972 foi presidente da Sociedade Brasileira de Espeleologia por duas gestões.

O evento é gratuito e não há necessidade de inscrição, basta comparecer para saber mais e dar sua opinião.

Com o avançar das discussões pretendemos organizar novos eventos para debater temas mais específicos e a participação de todos interessados é de extrema importância para termos propostas críticas, fundamentadas e construtivas, batalhando por uma legislação e política pública que realmente incentive a conservação do patrimônio brasileiro. Participem!

Apoio: Cooperação Técnica SBE VC RBM

Informações: www.cavernas.org.br/espeleolegis.asp

Conexão Subterrânea 99

Nesta edição você saberá mais sobre os seguintes assuntos:


- Gruta religiosa em Barão de Cocais é topografada

- Grupo Bambuí de Pesquisas Espeleológicas lança mais uma edição da revista O Carste

- SBE lança mais um número da revista Espelo-Tema

- I Workshop de Fundamentos para legislação espeleológicas é realizado em Campinas – SP

- Realizada primeira reunião do Comitê Técnico Consultivo da Instrução Normativa MMA No 02/2009

- Guia de boas práticas de recuperação ambiental em pedreiras e minas de calcário élançado em São Paulo
- Professor da UFLA publica em revista do grupo Nature

- 6º Encontro Mineiro de Espeleologia (EMESPE)

- EGB promove curso de Espeleo Resgate

- Área com cavernas vulcânicas do Paraná pode virar Unidade de Preservação

- Extração de minério ameaça cavernas e vegetação rara na Amazônia

- Governo discute preservação dos Sítios Geológicos e Paleontológicos

- ICMBIO apresenta dois Planos de Conservação

- Arqueólogo encontra marcações de 28 mil anos em caverna da Austrália

- Neandertais podem ter sido os primeiros artistas rupestres

- Homem já produzia potes de cerâmica há 20 mil anos

- Espaço Cartoon


Para obter os números anteriores acesse www.redespeleo.org.br.

NSS Biology Section Logo Design Contest

NSS Biology Section Logo Design Contest

$150 Cash Prize

The Biology Section of the NSS is an internal organization of the National Speleological Society, whose members have an interest in the tremendously diverse subterranean fauna of North America and the world.

Submissions are invited for designs of an official logo for the Biology Section of the National Speleological Society. A cash prize of $150 USD will be awarded to the creator or creators of the winning design. The winning design will become the property of the NSS Biology Section as the official logo of the section. By submitting a design, you waive all rights to the design. The NSS Biology Section will own copyright and all other rights (including right to modify the logo). If no suitable design is submitted, no prize will be awarded. The logo may be featured on official communications from the section as well as publications such as the on-line journal Speleobiology Notes.

The deadline for submissions is October 15, 2012. Submit your design via email to Dan Fong , including your full name, email address, postal address, and NSS Number (if you have one). If you are submitting more than one design, each submission should be a separate email (each email with two attachments, see below for file formats).

Design does not include signature, artist name/initials, ©, or date. Design should be 3 colors or less. A couple of helpful links on Logo design:

http://tinyurl.com/ygl8m22

http://tinyurl.com/9vp4rg


File format for submission:

Two files (which visually appear identical) must be attached to the above email:

1. Final Logo in adobe illustrator (*.ai file)
-no embedded raster data (vector data only!)
-any text converted to shapes (vectors) if a non-standard font

2. Provide a smaller version as a 300 dpi image file (gif or jpg) for judging. This file should be under 500 kb in size

All submissions will be judged by the six-member editorial board of Speleobiology Notes, which currently includes the two officers of the section: the Executive Secretary and the Treasurer. The winning design will be announced by November 1, 2012.

You do not have to be a member of the NSS or the Biology Section to submit an entry. Members of the editorial board of Speleobiology Notes, NSS Biology Section officers and their spouses or significant others may submit entries, but cannot accept the cash prize.

2 Miles Down & Microbes That Live on Radiation

Bacteria found in gold mines and frozen caves show the extreme flexibility of life, and hint at where else we might find it in the solar system.

The first time Tullis Onstott ventured underground, he squeezed into an elevator with dozens of South African gold miners and descended a mile into a pit called Mponeng. His goal: Finding the bizarre, hardy microbes that survive in sweltering, inhospitable rock. A geologist by training, Onstott spent his early career studying the Earth’s crust—until he heard a talk in 1993 about colonies of bacteria living thousands of feet below the surface. Ever since, he has made dozens of deep expeditions, sometimes paying his own way, and discovered bacteria living more than two miles beneath the surface in 140-degree-Fahrenheit heat. By investigating microbes in these harsh environments, Onstott is gleaning clues about how life could have begun in Earth’s hot, chaotic early days—and about what it might look like on other worlds. Even his office is underground, in the basement of Princeton University’s geology building, where Onstott met with DISCOVER reporter Valerie Ross.

(...)

Read it on: DISCOVER

El biólogo que descubrió más de 40 especies cavernícolas

Rafael Garcia Becerra con un equipo de bioespeleólogos en La Palma, 2006

Debajo, en el subsuelo de la Isla, miles de diminutos "bichos" se han adaptado a la vida cavernícola. No son animales populares, tampoco despiertan afecto, incluso muchos de ellos son desconocidos para la ciencia. Una de las personas que más conocen sus peripecias en las entrañas de La Palma es el biólogo Rafael García Becerra, "Felo", acostumbrado a mirar bajo tierra para describir todo aquello que se mueve. Por sus investigaciones ya se ha divulgado la friolera de más de 40 nuevas especies.

El entomólogo palmero afirma que el conocimiento de la fauna invertebrada de La Palma "es mínimo. Hay poca información", aunque a él es un mundo que lo apasiona: "Mi hobby es ver la distribución insular de las especies y, de camino, poder descubrirlas. Mientras vas buscando aparecen cosas que no conoces. No solo busco en la superficie sino también en el subsuelo, que me resulta mucho más interesante, ofrece mayor rendimiento porque es más sencillo encontrar especies nuevas para la ciencia en lugares menos estudiados. Aquí en La Palma han estado grandes entomólogos del mundo, que se recorrieron la Isla, pero nunca se metieron en el subsuelo. Los pioneros en meterse por debajo de la superficie fue la gente de la Universidad de La Laguna, las promociones que surgieron a partir de la década de los 80. Yo soy de esas promociones".

(...)

Articulo completo: El Dia.es

Fundamentos básicos del buceo en cuevas y grutas

Manual Cuevas

Rescatado el espeleólogo atrapado en Cueto-Coventosa

FOTOS

El grupo de espeleosocorro del GREIM de Potes ha rescatado hoy a un espeleólogo que no pudo completar por agotamiento el recorrido que estaba realizando junto a otro compañero en el sistema Cueto-Coventosa, en Arredondo.

Según han informado a Efe fuentes del Gobierno regional, el hombre, de origen madrileño, accedió ayer junto a un compañero a este sistema de cuevas para realizar un recorrido que requiere habitualmente unas 30 horas.

Cuando prácticamente habían finalizado, el espeleólogo estaba ya exhausto y no pudo afrontar la última parte, un tramo más difícil en el que hay un lago.

Su compañero sí que pudo culminar el recorrido y salir a la superficie, y fue el que dio el aviso para que se pusiera en marcha el operativo de rescate, que ha coordinado el 112 Cantabria.

El servicio de emergencias del Gobierno regional movilizó al GREIM (Grupo de Rescate Especial de Intervención en Montaña) de la Guardia Civil de Potes, que mandó a la zona su equipo de espeleosocorro, que entró al sistema junto con un médico.

Después de más de tres horas de intervención, sobre las siete y cuarto de la tarde, consiguieron sacar al exterior al espeleólogo, que salió caminando por su propio pie.

Notícia: Diário Montañez

Nouveautés spéléologie 2013

Check it on PETZL

Caving challenges in the era of white-nose

National Speleological Society conventioneers (from left) Avra
 Cohen of New York City, Tim Burlingame of Jersey City, N.J.,
and Jeff Call of Saltville, Va., power-wash their caving gear to
guard against the spread of white-nose syndrome after visiting 
a pair of Greenbrier County caves. More than 1,100 cavers from 
across the nation and around the world are in Lewisburg this
 week for the group's annual convention.

Nothing has affected recreational caving like the spread of white-nose syndrome, the disease that has killed millions of hibernating bats in 19 states and four Canadian provinces since it was first detected -- by a caver -- in Schoharie Caverns, N.Y., in 2006.

In an effort to slow the spread of the fungus-borne disease, state and federal officials initially closed all caves on public lands. Caves owned by conservancies and caving organizations in states where WNS had been found followed suit.

"A number of caving events were called off, and the communities that hosted them suffered financially," said Peter Youngbaer, WNS liaison for the National Speleological Society. The closures also took their toll on campgrounds and cafes in caving areas, he said.

Since then, as decontamination protocols were established for cavers and their gear, and as scientists learned more about the nature of the disease, a number of caves once closed have reopened, or are barring access only during winter hibernation months.

"It's now a patchwork of closures that can make it a challenge for cavers to know where to go," said Youngbaer. But National Speleological Society members are committed to continue working with state and federal scientists to learn more about WNS and limit its effect on cave dwelling bats, while promoting public awareness about the disease and cave conservation, Youngbaer said.

(...)

See all article: http://wvgazette.com/Outdoors/201206280124