Don McFarlane, who honestly owns and wears a kilt at times, organized this bit of madness to Costa Rica. We are looking at a number of relatively small caves with relatively high levels of bat populations, bad air and bad chemistry. For a renowned caver I must say this is one of his more hairbrained ideas. Yet here I am and looking forward to every bit of it.
Today's mission was to a cave in southwestern Costa Rica, a sea cave, with a bat population of around 800 individuals of three species (all in the Pteronotus genus). There just aren't all that many caves here, so the bats that need caves can really pile into even a small cave that fits their needs.
While we have visited this cave before, this time was mostly just to retrieve a data logger that was placed in the bat roost. No big deal, just go in, get slopped in the guano muck, and get out with the tiny bit of electronics that has been recording atmospheric data for many months.
However...this time the tide was several feet lower than we have ever seen it, and we were able to walk down a beach that was previously pounding waves on a sheer cliff face. To our surprise and good luck, there were more caves.
One was a tunnel that cuts through the rock somewhat parallel to the beach. Beautiful, but not too exiting for bats or other cave stuff.
Today's mission was to a cave in southwestern Costa Rica, a sea cave, with a bat population of around 800 individuals of three species (all in the Pteronotus genus). There just aren't all that many caves here, so the bats that need caves can really pile into even a small cave that fits their needs.
While we have visited this cave before, this time was mostly just to retrieve a data logger that was placed in the bat roost. No big deal, just go in, get slopped in the guano muck, and get out with the tiny bit of electronics that has been recording atmospheric data for many months.
However...this time the tide was several feet lower than we have ever seen it, and we were able to walk down a beach that was previously pounding waves on a sheer cliff face. To our surprise and good luck, there were more caves.
One was a tunnel that cuts through the rock somewhat parallel to the beach. Beautiful, but not too exiting for bats or other cave stuff.
Don McFarlane at the entrance to a sea cave/tunnel in Costa Rica. Another one is visible in the background
Another of the caves had the usual joint-controlled main passage going in straight from the shore, but there was a little bit of apparently phreatic passage going off on both the strike and the dip of the rock (the dip passage is behind Don and not visible)
Don McFarlane in a side passage of a sea cave in Costa Rica. This passage appears to be solutional and not typical of sea caves
After hiking the beach that wasn't there last time we visited, we finally went back and retrieved the data logger in the bat cave. And, for one more bit of science Don mapped the carbon dioxide levels in the cave from the entrance to the bat roost. As expected, CO2 was much higher at the roost.
Probably a bit about this photo is needed here as well. This is Don, holding a CO2 sniffer, below the bat roost. And while it looks like it is snowing, that's not exactly the case here. All those white spots are either fungal gnats or Tineidae moths (no way I can really tell). Fine, but they are attracted to light so a caving headlamp essentially is a great way to attract them into your eyes or up your nose. Such fun.
Otherwise, there were numerous giant cockroaches on the floor and it was raining in the cave. No, not water rain, but just think about standing under 800 small mammals and you get the idea of what was raining down.
Probably a bit about this photo is needed here as well. This is Don, holding a CO2 sniffer, below the bat roost. And while it looks like it is snowing, that's not exactly the case here. All those white spots are either fungal gnats or Tineidae moths (no way I can really tell). Fine, but they are attracted to light so a caving headlamp essentially is a great way to attract them into your eyes or up your nose. Such fun.
Otherwise, there were numerous giant cockroaches on the floor and it was raining in the cave. No, not water rain, but just think about standing under 800 small mammals and you get the idea of what was raining down.
Don McFarlane sampling CO2 levels in a bat cave in Costa Rica. The small dots are moths and gnats that live around the bat guano
And...looking up from where don was standing I took a quick snapshot. The bats are just carpeting the top of the fissure.
A big roost of Pterontus bats (three species) in Costa Rica
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