Cave Life

A GUIDE TOMISSOURI’S

byWilliam R. Elliott

CAVE

LIFE

70 Cave SpeciesBrought to Light

hisguidefillsaneedforafieldidentificationmanualandintroductiontothetypicalcavelifeofMissouri.ItwillbeusefulthroughouttheOzarkRegionandadjacentstates,wheremanyofthesamespeciesorgeneraoccur.Theaudienceforthisguideincludescavers,naturalists,caveguides,teachersandexperiencedstudents.YoumayaccessthisguideontheBiospeleologyWebsiteathttp://www.utexas.edu/tmm/sponsored_sites/biospeleology.TheMissouriDepartmentofConservationalsopublishesothermaterialoncavesandkarst. About900speciesofanimalsareknownfromMissouricaves.InanOzarkcaveyouwillencounterrelatedspeciesthatlooklikesomeofthe70imagesinthisguide.Avoidmakingthesubjectfitthephoto,andreadthecaptionstoseeiftheidentificationfits.Manysmallcreatureshavefeaturesthatonlyanexpertcouldidentifyonapreservedspecimen.Pleasedonothandlewildlifeunlessyouareaqualifiedbiologist.DonotremovewildlifefromacaveexceptunderaMissouriWildlifeCollector’sPermit,includingsmallinvertebrates,evenforeducationaluse.ThepermitisavailablefromtheMissouriDepartmentofConservation.Donothandlewildmammals,astheymayharborcommunicablediseases.Rabiesoccursatlowratesinbats,andismorecommoninskunks,butwildmammals,especiallycarnivores,shouldonlybehandledwhennecessarybythosewhohavebeenvaccinatedagainstrabies. Avoidcloseexaminationandphotographyofbatsunlessitisnecessaryforascientificstudy.Lights,noiseandbodyheataredisturbingtobats,andmaycausethemtowakeupfromhibernationandexpendtoomuchoftheirfatreserves, whichtheyneedtosurvivethewinter.Summerbatcoloniesoftenfleefromintruders,droppingtheiryoung,whichtheycannotretrievefromtheground.Donotenteracavewithoutthepermissonoftheowner,andobeysignspostedthere.Itisunlawfultodiginacavewithoutapermit,ortotamperwithorbypassacavegateorfence.Safetyrequireseachcavertohaveahelmetwithachinstrapandaheadlamp,twobackuplightsources,sturdylace-upbootswithgrippingsolesandgloves.Optionalequipmentincludeskneeandelbowpadsandspecialinsulation.ContacttheMissouriDepartmentofConservation’scavebiologist,oryourclosestNationalSpeleologicalSociety“grotto”(club)forfurtherinformation.MostphotosarebyWilliamR.Elliott,cavebiologistfortheMissouriDepartmentofConservation.ManythankstoJamesE.Gardner,JimRathert,DavidC.Ashley,LawrenceIreland,TomJohnson,HarryHarnish,RickThom,DantéFenolio,A.J.HendershottandGregStonerfortheuseoftheirphotos,andHortonH.HobbsIIIandWilliamL.Pfliegerfortheirillustrations.IamgratefultoMikeSlay,PatrickKipp,BernadetteDrydenandSusanFine,whoassistedmeinthisproject.

Introduction

T

Note:Thisbookletusesthemetricsystemthroughout.Thereare25.4mm(2.54cm)perinch,soa75-mmsalamanderisabout3incheslong.

Worms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17Snails. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Amphipods . . . . . . . . . . . . .20Isopods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22Decapods. . . . . . . . . . . . . .24Spiders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26Harvestmen. . . . . . . . . . . . .27Pseudoscorpions. . . . . . . . .28Millipedes . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28Insects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30Fishes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2Salamanders. . . . . . . . . . . . .4Frogs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8Birds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Bats. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Contents

Vertebrates Invertebrates

Grotto Salamander

Eurycea spelaea

inTumblingCreekCave,TaneyCounty,Missouri.Thisindividualisequallyathomeinwateroronadampfloor.Adultsrangefrom75-120mm.Notetheskingrowingovertheeyesandtheabsenceofgillsintheadult.Thisspecieswascalled

Typhlotriton spelaeus

formanyyears.

(front cover)

SB=stygobite(aquatictroglobite)TB=troglobitePB=phreatobiteSP=stygophileTP=troglophileSX=stygoxeneTX=trogloxenePleaseseetheglossaryfordefinitionsoftheseterms.