Serra do Ramalho
Encyclopedia
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
s of the Serro da Ramalho karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
area in the southwestern Bahia State, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, have been explored since the early 2000s. The several large cave systems present a great biospeleological potential. Newly discovered species include the first troglobitic
Troglobite
Troglobites are small cave-dwelling animals that have adapted to their dark surroundings. Troglobite species include spiders, insects, fish and others. They live permanently underground and cannot survive outside the cave environment. Troglobite adaptations and characteristics include a heightened...
Amblypygi recorded for Brazil, Charinus troglobius Baptista & Giupponi, 2003, an eyeless harvestman (Giupponia chagasi Pérez & Kury, 2002), an as yet undescribed genus of spiders (Ochyroceratidae
Ochyroceratidae
The Ochyroceratidae are a six-eyed spider family in the Leptonetoidea superfamily, with 154 described species in 14 genera.Ochyroceratidae are common inhabitants of the tropical forest litter and caves in South Africa, the Caribbean and Asia, especially species rich in the Indo-Pacific, where they...
), and a species of catfish
Catfish
Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...
(Rhamdia enfurnada Bichuette & Trajano, 2005).
Further reading
- XXVII Congresso Brasileiro de Espeleologia (2003): O potencial espeleológico da Serra do Ramalho. Sociedade Brasileira de Espeleologia. Abstract (in Portuguese)