Thatchfield Great Cave

Last updated
Thatchfield Great Cave
Location Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica
Depth177 metres (581 ft) [1]
Length1,402 metres (4,600 ft) [1]
Entrances3 [2]
List of
entrances		The Lighthole
Entrance 1
Entrance 2

Thatchfield Great Cave is a large cave in Saint Ann Parish near the north coast of Jamaica. Because it is considered to be under threat its exact location is not widely publicised. [3]

Cave Natural underground space large enough for a human to enter

A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word cave can also refer to much smaller openings such as sea caves, rock shelters, and grottos, though strictly speaking a cave is exogene, meaning it is deeper than its opening is wide, and a rock shelter is endogene.

Saint Ann Parish Parish in Middlesex, Jamaica

Saint Ann is the largest parish in Jamaica. It is situated on the north coast of the island, in the county of Middlesex, roughly halfway between the eastern and western ends of the island. It is often called "the Garden Parish of Jamaica" on account of its natural floral beauty. Its capital is Saint Ann's Bay. Saint Ann comprises New Seville, the first Spanish Settlement in Jamaica.

Jamaica Country in the Caribbean

Jamaica is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning 10,990 square kilometres (4,240 sq mi) in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about 145 kilometres (90 mi) south of Cuba, and 191 kilometres (119 mi) west of Hispaniola ; the British Overseas Territory of the Cayman Islands lies some 215 kilometres (134 mi) to the north-west.

Contents

Natural history

Thatchfield Great Cave is considered to be one of the largest bat roosts on the island of Jamaica. [2] The cave also contains considerable numbers of invertebrates, in particular beetles and spiders. [2] Most of the life in this cave is supported by large amounts of bat guano. [2]

Bat Order of flying mammals

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera; with their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more manoeuvrable than birds, flying with their very long spread-out digits covered with a thin membrane or patagium. The smallest bat, and arguably the smallest extant mammal, is Kitti's hog-nosed bat, which is 29–34 mm (1.14–1.34 in) in length, 15 cm (5.91 in) across the wings and 2–2.6 g (0.07–0.09 oz) in mass. The largest bats are the flying foxes and the giant golden-crowned flying fox, Acerodon jubatus, which can weigh 1.6 kg (4 lb) and have a wingspan of 1.7 m.

Guano excrement of seabirds and bats

Guano is the accumulated excrement of seabirds and bats. As a manure, guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to its exceptionally high content of nitrogen, phosphate and potassium: key nutrients essential for plant growth. Guano was also, to a lesser extent, sought for the production of gunpowder and other explosive materials. The 19th-century guano trade played a pivotal role in the development of modern input-intensive farming, but its demand began to decline after the discovery of the Haber–Bosch process of nitrogen fixing led to the production of synthetic fertilizers. The demand for guano spurred the human colonization of remote bird islands in many parts of the world, resulting in some of the first examples of U.S. colonialism and the expansion of the British Empire. The guano mining process resulted in ecological degradation through the loss of millions of seabirds. Unsustainable guano mining in caves alters cave shape, causing bats to abandon the roost. Guano mining also involved the poor treatment and enslavement of workers such as Chinese immigrants, Native Hawaiians, and African diaspora.

See also

The Jamaican Caves Organisation (JCO) is an all-volunteer caving organisation devoted to the preservation, exploration and documentation of caves in Jamaica. It is currently the only non-profit group in Jamaica dedicated to education, research and advocacy about caves.

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References

  1. 1 2 Fincham, Alan G (1997). Jamaica Underground (2nd ed.). ISBN   976-640-036-9.
  2. 1 2 3 4 STEWART, R S (2004-01-25). "Thatchfield Great Cave - Field Notes". Jamaican Caves Organisation . Retrieved 2009-09-17.
  3. ↑ "The Jamaican GPS Cave Register". Jamaican Caves Organization.

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