It seems to be cave day. Just this morning, PZ posted a story on the Ozark big-eared bat, a subspecies of the Townsend’s big-eared bat. That sent me off into fond reminiscences of Lava Beds National Monument, one of my favorite places on the planet, which hosts a relatively healthy Townsend’s population.
And now comes some news from Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks. This is just so cool:
In the caves of Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks, researchers have found 27 species… that had never been seen before. .. ‘We thought we might find a handful of new species,’ said Joel Despain, cave specialist for the parks. ‘It was amazing to find 27.’
Most caves are literally terra incognita for biologists, and there are almost certainly other undiscovered species lurking in the west. I’ll be scouring the news tomorrow for more, and maybe if I feel like it I’ll write about an adventure I had in Lava Beds about ten years ago. (Short version: the cardinal rules for exploring caves are don’t go alone, always carry a spare flashlight, tell someone on the outside where you’re going, and wear a hard hat. The metacardinal rule: do not break all four cardinal rules at once.)
UPDATE: The Los Angeles Times has a little bit more information.
