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Volume 50, Issue 1 (2021)

IYCK 2021

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Stygobitic crustaceans in an anchialine cave with an archeological heritage at Vodeni Rat (Island of Sveti Klement, Hvar, Croatia)
Alessandro Montanari, Nicolas Cerveau, Barbara Fiasca, Jean-François Flot, Diana Galassi, Maurizio Mainiero, David McGee, Tadeusz Namiotko, Stefano Recanatini, and Fabio Stoch

  • Archeologic and archeometric assessments of Vodeni Rat cave
  • Assessment of the geology of the Adriatic Carbonate Platform and the Croatian karst
  • Geologic and environmental analysis of the Vodeni Rat cave area
  • Systematic and ecologic assessments of the stygobitic crustacean fauna in the Vodeni Rat cave
  • Timing of colonization and partitioning of crustacean species in the neo-anchialine cave of Vodeni Rat

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Increased cave use by butterflies and moths: a response to climate warming?
Otto Moog, Erhard Christian, and Rudolf Eis

  • The number of lepidopteran species from Austrian caves sharply increased since 2015
  • Most of the newly recorded species visit cave mouths by day in the warm season
  • Climate warming makes a cave stay on hot summer days more attractive to Lepidoptera
  • The inclination to use caves as diurnal retreats can differ between related species

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On the genesis of aluminum-rich speleothems in a granite cave of NW Spain
Jorge Sanjurjo-Sanchez, Carlos Arce Chamorro, Juan Ramón Vidal Romaní, Marcos Vaqueiro-Rodríguez, Victor Barrientos, and Joeri Kaal

  • Biospeleothems are frequent in granite caves but they have been poorly studied
  • The formation of Al-rich speleothem are poorly understood
  • Al-rich speleothems in one of Europe's major granite cave have been analyzed
  • Study reports the composition, accretion process, age, and growth rate of an Al-rich speleothem
  • Al-rich speleothems might be good environmental archives

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Microbiological study in a gneissic cave from Sri Lanka, with special focus on potential antimicrobial activities
Ethige Isuru P. Silva, Pathmakumara Jayasingha, Saman Senanayake, Anura Dandeniya, and Dona Helani Munasinghe

  • Sthreepura Cave, Sri Lanka, has extreme conditions with close to strong acidic cave-sediments
  • Four cave wall-dwelling fungal isolates were identified as the first records in Sri Lanka
  • Of eight fungal isolates, three showed antimicrobial activity against at least one human pathogen
  • Aspergillus fumigatus strain had good antimicrobial activities against Staphylococcus aureus
  • Four chemical fractions with antimicrobial activities against S. aureus were identified

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Microhabitat selection of a Sicilian subterranean woodlouse and its implications for cave management
Giuseppe Nicolosi, Stefano Mammola, Salvatore Costanzo, Giorgio Sabella, Rosolino Cirrincione, Giovanni Signorello, and Marco Isaia

  • The impact of cave tourism on cave-dwelling arthropods is understudied
  • We investigated the microhabitat selection of an endemic cave dwelling woodlouse
  • Our target species is primarily affected by microclimate alterations
  • Monitoring of cave microclimate is recommended

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Protura (Arthropoda: Hexapoda) in Slovenian caves
Loris Galli, Franc Janžekovič, Peter Kozel, and Tone Novak

  • The fauna of 60 cavities in Slovenia was studied: in 31 proturans were found
  • No significant difference was observed between caves with and without Protura
  • 286 specimens from 15 caves belonged to 10 species (seven are new for Slovenia)
  • Proturans passively colonize caves through accidental introduction from surface
  • No species showed specific morphological adaptations to the cave environment

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Application of the global SRTM and AW3D30 digital elevation models to mapping folds at cave sites
Mark J. Abolins and Albert E. Ogden

  • The global SRTM digital terrain model and AW3D30 digital surface model are used to map and describe folds
  • Structural controls on cave passage orientation are revealed
  • Discoveries are made in very gently folded strata dipping <5o
  • Evaluation site characteristics indicate potential for wide use

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Bat guano minerals and mineralization processes in Chameau Cave, Eastern Morocco
Philippe Audra, Vasile Heresanu, Lionel Barriquand, Mohamed El Kadiri Boutchich, Stephane Jaillet, Edwige Pons-Branchu, Pavel Bosak, Hai Cheng, R Lawrence Edwards, and Michel Renda

  • Bat guano decay produced leachates resulting in phosphates and sulfates
  • Minerals are grouped in precursors and result from reaction with carbonates and phyllosilicates
  • Old fluvial deposits have been deeply weathered and phosphatized by guano leachates
  • Pure “candy-floss” gypsum piles could be related to specific condensation/evaporation conditions
  • Besides dust particles, condensation is an essential factor controlling guano decay in dry caves