The natural underground hollow passage under the earth, especially one opening to the surface, enough for a person or small group of people to enter. The cave is formed by geologic process involving combination of chemical processes, tectonic forces, and atmospheric influences. The cave also refers to spaces like rock shelters, sea caves and grottos with types and formations known as speteogenesis (origin of caves developments). Most of the caves are formed by various geologic processes such as the combination of chemical processes, earth erosion from water, microorganisms, pressures and even digging. The caves are commonly formed by Limestone. The science of exploring and study of caves, environment and its surroundings is known as Speleology. Caving, potholing (in United Kingdom and Ireland) or spelunking (in the United States and Canada) is the science of cave exploration for recreation.
Rock Shelter Caves
Cave Kabele is a Rock shelter cave
Neptune Grotto Cave, Sardinia, Italy
Neptune Grotto cave, stalactite cave, Sardinia, Italy
Saalfeld Fairy Grottoes, Germany
Saalfeld Fairy Grottos , Germany
Jeita Grotto Cave, Lebanon
Jeita Grotto cave, Beirut, Lebanon
Jeita Grotto lower cave, Beirut,Lebanon
1) Solutional Caves
Speleothems in Hall of the Mountain King, Ogot Craig a Ffynnon, South Wales
Ogof y Daren Cilau cave entrance, cave in Wales
The most frequent occurring caves that form in rocks that is soluble like the limestone, that includes chalk, dolomite, marble, salt and gypsum is known as the solutional cave. The rocks then is dissolved by the natural acids in ground water that passes gradually through small openings, faults, joints and other sources, over geological new development or important events in history of the cave system. The speleothems, the secondary mineral deposits in caves or cave formation includes flowstones, stalactites, stalagmites, helictites, soda straws and columns.
2) The Mystery Cave of Minnesota (Flowstone formation)
Mystery Cave in Minnesota, with flowstone formation
Bacon Cave in King’s Canyon National Park
Bacon cave ,King’s Canyon National Park (weird bacon-like flowstone)
Caverns of Sonora
Caverns of Sonora, National Natural Landmark, a cave with flowstone formation
Gunns Plain Cave
Gunns Plain cave’s arachnocampa’s silk-thread like formation
Gunns Plains Cave, Tasmania, Australia, flowstone suspended from ceiling
3) Doolin Cave Stalactites
Doolin Cave Stalactities
Doolin River Cave Stalactities
Doolin River Cave flowstones
Crackpot Cave Stalactites
Crackpot Cave column
Stalactite in Crackpot Cave, Wenslydale
4) Carlsbad Caverns stalagmites and stalactites formation, New Mexico
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico, limestones formation
Witch Finger stalagmites, Carlsbad Caverns
Stalagmites Carlsbad Caverns
5) Wyandotte Cave Helictites
rare helictites formation at Wyandotte Caves, Indiana, United States
Wyandotte Cave Stalagmite
Timpanogos Cave, Utah
Helictites, the Great Hear of Timpanogos Cave
Timpanogos Cave , Utah
Fishtail helictites at Caverns of Sonora, Texas
Treak Cliff Caverns
The Stork at Treak Cliff Cavern , helictites, stalactites and stalagmites formations
Treak Cliff Caverns helictites formation, Derbyshire
Jenolan Caves , Australia
Jenolan Caves in Australia, with helictities formations
Jenolan Caves, Blue Mountain, Australia
The Minaret, Jenolan Caves, Australia
Lucas Cave ,New South Wales, Australia
Lucas Cave at Jenolan Caves, New South Wales, Australia
6) Lechuguilla Cave , New Mexico
Lechuguilla Cave, New Mexico, with Stalagmites, Stalactites, and draperies by a pool
Lechuguilla cave also known as Chandellier Ballroom cave
Lechuguilla cave or the Chandellier Ballroom cave, New Mexico (http://scchablis.com
7) Primary Caves ( Lave Tube Cave, Hawaii)
Lava tube cave, Hawaii
Lava Tube cave, Hawaii
Thurston Lava Tube cave, Big Island, Hawaii
Valentine Cave, Lava Tube cave
Valentine Cave, a lava tube cave formation
Manjanggul Lava Pillar Cave, Jeju-do, Korea
Mushpot Cave , Lavacles cave or lava tube cave
Rangitoto Lava tube cave entrance, New Zealand
Rangitoto lava tube cave, New Zealand
Rare Orchids growing in Rangitoto lava tube cave
Sea Caves or Littoral Cave
Sea Cave
Sea Cave cathedral
Painted Cave, the large sea cave in Santa Cruz Island, California
Sea cave fault formation
9) Soda Straws also known as Tubular Stalactites
Gardener’s Gut straws stalactites, Waitomo area, New Zealand
Waitomo Glowworm Cave, New Zealand
10) Corrasional Caves or Erosional Caves are caves that formed by erosion by flowing streams carrying sediments and rocks, and can form any kind of rock, gramite or hard rocks. The weakness to guide the flowing water zone is known as the fault or joint zones. Wind caves or aerolian caves, formed by wind-born sediments is a subtype of erosional cave.
Jewel Cave, Black Hill,
Jewel Cave Frostwork, Black Hill, South Dakota
Jewel Cave, is a wind cave with Calcite crystals formation
Jewel Cave Hydromagnesite Balloon
Boxwork of a wind cave in Hot Springs, South Dakota
Cave Popcorn or coral cave, common cave formation, Grand Canyon Caverns
Imperial Cave
Imperial Cave
Ludi Purple Cave, Erosional Cave
Ludi cave, purple cave stalactites vault formation
Ludi Purple Cave
11) Glacier Caves
Glacier Cave in Big Four Glacier, Big Four Mountain, Washington, CA
Glacier Cave on Perito Moreno Glacier
Ice Sea Caves
Ice Cave
Dobsinska Ice Cave
Titlis Ice Cave
Ice Caves are also known as fracture caves.
12) Talus caves entrance between boulders or rocks that have fallen down into a rock piles, often from landslides from cliff-bases.
Talus boulders entrance at Valentine Cave
Valentine Cave, a lava tube cave, with talus cave entrance
talus cave entrance Caird cave
13) Anchialine Caves coastal caves containing mixtures of salt water and fresh waters, and existing in many parts of the world often affecting endemic animals of the regions.
Anchaline cave Eleuthera Blue Hole Cave
Ginnie Springs Cave, anchialine Cave
14) Cenote Caves
Yucatan cenote, Mexico
Cenote a natural sinkhole or pit cave
The natural deep pit or sinkhole a result from the collapse of limestone bedrocks the exposed the ground water is know as the cenote.
15) Pit Caves or Vertical caves
Haviaren Pit Cave, Little Carpathians ,Western Slovakia
Solano de las Golondrinas Pit Cave
Enormous pit cave at Solano de las Golondrinas
aerial view of Solano de las Golondrinas Pit cave
16) Puerto Princesa, Palawan Sea caves
El Nido Cathedral Cave, Palawan, Philippines
Underwater Cave entrance, Palawan, Philippines
Puerto Princesa underground river cave, Palawan, Philippines
Tabon Cave, Quezon, Palawan
Tabon Cave, Quezon, Palawan, Philippines
Tabon Cave in Quezon, Palawan, Philippines
Callao Cave, Tuguegarao, Cagayan, Philippines
Callao Cave entrance, Tuguegarao, Cagayan, Philippines
Callao Cave, Tuguegarao, Cagayan, Philippines
17) Weird Underwater Caves
Sistema Sac Actun, Mexico
Sistema Sac Actun underwater Cave, Mexico
Sistema Ox Bel Ha, Mexico, Underwater Caves
Sistema Ox Bel Ha
Sistema Ox Bel Ha, underwater cave in Mexico
18) Krubera-Voronya Cave, World’s Deepest Cave
Krubera Voronya Cave, world’s deepest cave, Abkhazia
Krubera Cave, deepest cave in the world
Han Son Doong Cave, Vietnam
Hang Son Doong Cave, Vietnam
Han Son Doong Cave, Vietnam
Hang Son Doong Cave
Api Chamber of Whiterock Cave, Sarawak, Malaysia
Caves in China
Reed Flute Cave, a Karst cave, China with artificial lightnings, Guilin, Guangxi
Seven Star Cave, Guangxi Province
19) Crystal Cave, Mexico
Crystal Caves, Mexico
Crystal Cave Giant, in Mexico
Crystal Giant Cave, Mexico (apasaje.net
20) Abukuma-do Cave, Japan
Abukuma-do Cave, flowstones and mushroom rocks, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan
Boxwork formation at Abukuma-do Cave, Fukushima, Japan
Speleothem formation at Abukuma-do Cave
The Christmas Tree Stalagmites and The Sliver Frost are Speleothem inside Abukuma-do Cave
The weird formation of Speleothem formation of the Christmas tree form of stalagmites and The Silver Frost formation from dripstone from the cave’s roof and formed weird formation columns.
Pindaya Caves, Burma
Pindaya Cave in Burma
Pindaya Cave interior
Cave Temples in India
Cave Temple of Lord Amarnath, Hindu pilgrimage temple
Badami Cave Temple, Kamataka, India
Borra Cave or Borra Guhalu, Andhra Pradesh
Borra Caves, India
Borra Caves interior, worshiping of stalagmites
New Athos Cave, Iverian Mountain, Georgia
New Athos Skeleton Cave, Georgia