New Cave!

Last Sunday, a crew of seven explored a small cave below Point Disappointment. A narrow passageway led to a spacious room and we explored two passages leading from this room, squeezing through narrow tunnels. The crew found two bats, two slimy salamanders, assorted spiders, and cave crickets.

Want to check it out? Park at the old waste water treatment plant and walk down Depot Branch about a mile till you find a cave opening on your right. For you geologically minded folks, the cave opening is 50 meters downstream from the disconformity between the Mississippian Limestone and Pennsylvanian sandstone.

-Elspeth

Dearest Bio-geeks,
 It is an honor to announce the results from a nigh-spontaneous herping
 quest that occurred yestereve.

 Locale:  Ephemeral Pond, end'o'Brakefield
 Questers:  EM Keen, DA McCoy, EM Iralu
 Query:  Caudata.

 RESULTS:
 106 Marbled Salamanders (Ambystoma opacum).
 106.   M a r b l e d - freaking - s a l a m a n d e r s .
 In a single ephemeral pond.
 In a 40-minute search window.
 Most were in mating pairs.

 CONCLUSION:
 The plateau is teeming.         t      e       e       m      i      n        g    .