Cavernas

En 2004 se pone en marcha el proyecto de estudio espeleológico-ambiental Barker, coordinado por el GEA con el apoyo de la Municipalidad de Benito Juárez y el auspicio de la Federación Argentina de Espeleología. Dentro de este, se desarrolla un plan para explorar, topografiar y catastrar todas las cavidades del área, así como también ofrecer apoyo cartográfico a las distintas disciplinas intervinientes en el estudio de evaluación del patrimonio espeleológico del sitio y a la propuesta de conservación y manejo espeleológico.

La Pirámide del Castillo, en Chichén Itzá, constituye un magnífico ejemplo del ingenio y habilidad de los eruditos mayas. En la pirámide se plasman conocimientos astronómicos, calendáricos y geométricos. Estudios recientes del autor demuestran la alineación del edifico al amanecer y el ocaso, en los días en que el Sol pasa por el cenit sobre Chichén Itzá. Por lo tanto el edificio está orientado al Sol cenital. Sin embargo, un estudio reciente del autor propone que además, en toda su composición, los constructores manifestaron en el número de escalones, escalinatas, cuerpos y paneles un mensaje aritmético que hacía evidente su calendario. De ser así, propongo que también incluyeron su interpretación del cosmos en el cuerpo de la pirámide, recurriendo a un patrón de números enteros en las medidas angulares y de longitud, donde factores, productos, dividendos, divisores y cocientes hacían evidente la metafórica armonía del espacio y el tiempo.

In this article we introduce some important concepts about the relevance of the study and cataloging of Brazilian biodiversity, bringing a discussion of the importance of knowledge about it and its environmental, economic and social consequences. We also discuss some challenges experienced daily by researchers to build this knowledge, as well as its applicability to the environmental conservation. Some Brazilian ecosystems, among marine, freshwater, and terrestrial habitats, are addressed in this discussion. It is expected that this paper highlights some of the aspects of the huge brazilian biodiversity and encourage new students to become researcher sand explorers toward the knowledge of the planet’s biological heritage.

The Fenda Sem Fim Cave System, located in the Campos Gerais National Park, in the Ponta Grossa municipality, Paraná State, comprises a set of twenty-two natural underground cavities, with a good perspective of new speleological records. Works performed by the ‘Grupo Universitário de Pesquisas Espeleológicas’ (GUPE - University Group of Speleological Surveys) allowed to classify this system with the highest concentration of caves per square meter in the South Region of Brazil. In addition to the
speleological relevance exist important rock art records related to the primitive indigenous peoples who inhabited this region, an archaeological heritage yet poor known. The preliminary results reveal the natural and cultural richness of this quartz sandstones cave system.

Este documento é resultado do projeto de pesquisa “Valores da geodiversidade de cavidades subterrâneas no contexto da prestação de serviços ecossistêmicos: subsídios para a elaboração do plano de manejo do Parque Nacional dos Campos Gerais (Paraná) e propostas para ampliação da unidade de conservação”, desenvolvido pelo Grupo Universitário de Pesquisas Espeleológicas (GUPE), com o Apoio do Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio) e patrocínio da Fundação Grupo Boticário de Proteção à Natureza.
O projeto apresentou cinco metas: a) inventariar todas as cavidades situadas dentro do Parque Nacional dos Campos Gerais e de seu entorno imediato; b) realizar uma análise das influências dos diferentes usos do solo para as cavidades subterrâneas no contexto de bacia hidrográfica, propondo ações de manejo nestes espaços geográficos; c) gerar mapa contendo uma proposta de áreas para ampliação do Parque Nacional dos Campos Gerais; d) gerar um relatório detalhado de cada cavidade subterrânea envolvendo plano de ações para o manejo e conservação do patrimônio espeleológico do parque e e) entrega de um documento de recomendações, embasadas pelos resultados obtidos pelo projeto.

The aim of this study was to analyze the processes that led to the invention of speleological practices and speleotourist phenomenon, and its international social production and its insertion in the Brazilian context. It is considered that the development of speleology as an activity of multiple meaning, technical, sporting, scientific, entertainment and contact with nature was crucial to the generation of movement and flows of people to areas where there are speleological sites. It is, as a starting point that is the appropriate basis for the market, to the deployment of tourism in caves. The theoretical and methodological approach multi-referential starts of the concepts of the phenomenology of the imagination of Bachelard and the contributions of geopoetic and of the humanistic and cultural geography, with contributions also from the environmental perception and topophilia (Tuan). It was intended to study the collective imaginary and the symbolic aspects of the relationship of human societies with the caves. It is also to verify the dynamics and determinants of the speleotourist process. The methodological procedures emphasized an analysis of visual narratives and the production of senses from the discursive practices of landscape perception relating to Brazilian caves, tourist visitation and environmental protection, highlighting a case study in the Ribeira Valley (SP). It was performed an extensive documentary analysis, using varied materials collected in libraries, bookstores and in some cases also in electronic media. The images were collected from websites on speleology or related areas, or in websites of authorities or personal blogs and fotologs. There was also a film analysis of 42 film productions. The photogeographical and sociocultural survey of the speleological practices and caving-tourism was produced during the field trips, conducted between 2000-2010 in several places in Brazil, with emphasis on the Upper Ribeira Valley, and also in other countries (Portugal, Cuba), generating a corpus with thousands of photos, plus others photos provided by collaborators. It was used, yet, varied methods of interview, such as recordings of oral and electronic interviews, through the questionnaire, with 21 cavers or speleologists, of which 18 propitiated data about representations of to be a speleologist. The questionnaires on the social representations of the cave were incorporated into the study, using material that was produced under the History of Speleology Section of the Brazilian Speleological Society (SBE), since 1998, involving 461 people. The participants involved are students of basic education or university level, contrasting with urban dwellers of São Paulo or nearby places of speleological sites, such as Iporanga (SP). The outcomes they demonstrated the influences of the imaginary poetic and of the symbolic content from the caves into the development from speleological activity and speleotourist. The karst landscape representations and speleological practices appeared with extreme wealth, both in the testimonials and documents of philosophical, religious, literary and film themes. It is essential to increase the educational processes for the formation of cavers and speleologists, the spread of the speleological practices and the dissemination of caving, approaching rationalities and subjectivities. This allows us to rethink our historical relationship with the underworld, the interactions of caving and tourism along de trajectory of contemporary society.

Resumen Este estudio se basa en la descripción de los impactos ambientales en la Caverna Sabana de León y Cueva Coco Loco ubicadas en el municipio de Manaure departamento del Cesar. Estos impactos son causados por el mal uso en los ambientes cárstico, ya que realizan actividades no adecuadas tales como quema de basura, grafiti, rompimiento y agrietamiento mecánico de espeleotemas, entre otros. Estos ambientes cárstico juegan un papel fundamental en la recuperación y preservación de comunidades biológicas tales como los murciélagos, mil pies, arañas, peces, entre otros. Los murciélagos encontrados en el área de estudio son de habito frugívoro, tales como Mormoops me galopbylla (familia Mormoopidae), común mente conocido como murciélago rostro de fantasma, de mediano tamaño alargado y delgado, y Platyrrbinus dorsalis, común mente conocido como murciélago de nariz ancha de thomas, tamaño mediano, pelaje denso y suave; estas especies juegan un papel fundamental en la recuperación de bos...

Resumen Este estudio se basa en la descripción de los impactos ambientales en la Caverna Sabana de León y Cueva Coco Loco ubicadas en el municipio de Manaure departamento del Cesar. Estos impactos son causados por el mal uso en los ambientes cárstico, ya que realizan actividades no adecuadas tales como quema de basura, grafiti, rompimiento y agrietamiento mecánico de espeleotemas, entre otros. Estos ambientes cárstico juegan un papel fundamental en la recuperación y preservación de comunidades biológicas tales como los murciélagos, mil pies, arañas, peces, entre otros. Los murciélagos encontrados en el área de estudio son de habito frugívoro, tales como Mormoops me galopbylla (familia Mormoopidae), común mente conocido como murciélago rostro de fantasma, de mediano tamaño alargado y delgado, y Platyrrbinus dorsalis, común mente conocido como murciélago de nariz ancha de thomas, tamaño mediano, pelaje denso y suave; estas especies juegan un papel fundamental en la recuperación de bosques ya que tienen capacidad de consumir diversos frutos en la noche, y mientras vuelan pueden detectar y dispersar una gran cantidad de semillas. Palabras clave: Espeleología, ambiente cárstico, Grupo Cogollo, roca caliza, impacto ambiental. Abstract This study is based on the description of the environmental impacts in the Cavern Sabana de León and Coco Loco Cave located in the municipality of Manaure department of Cesar. These impacts are caused by misuse in karstic environments, as they perform unsuitable activities such as burning trash, graffiti, breaking and mechanical cracking of speleothems. These karst environments play a fundamental role in the recovery and preservation of biological communities such as bats, thousand feet, spiders, fish, among others. The bats