An Introduction to the Yarrangobilly Caves, New South Wales, Australia - Part II, 1965, Rose P. V.

Present-Day Cave Beetle Fauna in Australia A Pointer to Past Climatic Change, 1965, Moore, B. P.

Beetles form an important element of life in caves, where they provide some of the most spectacular examples of adaptation to the environment. The troglobic forms are of greatest interest from the zoogeographical point of view and their present distributions, which are largely limited to the temperate regions of the world, appear to have been determined by the glaciations and later climatic changes of the Quaternary. Troglophiles, which are much more widespread, show little adaptation and are almost certainly recently evolved cavernicoles.

The Development of Cocklebiddy Cave Eucla Basin, Western Australia, 1965, Lowry, D. C.

At present, the best account of cave formation in the Eucla Basin is that of Jennings (1961). However, the paper does not contain detailed information or maps of Cocklebiddy Cave, and this account should help to fill that need. The cave is the westernmost deep cave in the Eucla Basin (see area map in Anderson, 1964). It has received little attention from cave exploration parties from the Eastern States of Australia.

Calcium and Magnesium In Karst Waters, 1965, Douglas, I.

The basic textbooks and reference sources in speleology (Kunsky, 1954; Trombe, 1952 and Warwick, 1962) describe the process of solution of carbonate rocks in terms of the system CaCO3 - H20 - CO2, making little or no reference to the role of MgCO3 in the solution process. The widespread occurrence of dolomitic rocks amongst the older sedimentary formations of Australia, e.g., at Buchan, Victoria, and Camooweal, Queensland, makes some knowledge of the complexity of solution processes in rocks containing dolomite highly desirable for the understanding of the development of caves in this continent. This paper is intended to review the scattered literature on this topic and to describe what is known of the behaviour of the system CaO - Mg0 - CO2 - H20.

Caves of the Coastal Areas of South Australia, 1965, Sexton, R. T.

The majority of South Australian caves occur in the Tertiary and Quaternary limestones of the coastal areas. Their distribution is discussed here on a geological rather than a geographical basis. The most significant caves are briefly described and illustrated to indicate different types and related developments in the coastal limestones. The most notable feature of the limestones is their soft, porous nature. Caves also occur in South Australia in hard, massively bedded Cambrian and Pre-Cambrian limestones and dolomites. These are not discussed in the present paper. To facilitate recording, South Australia has been divided into six zones as shown in Figure 1, and the caves numbered in order of discovery in each area. In general, both the name and the number of the cave have been given, but unnamed caves are specified by number only. The cave maps have been chosen to give as wide a coverage as possible of the various types, or to illustrate points of particular interest. The arrows on the section lines show the direction of viewing, and the sections are numbered to relate them to the plans. Where a cross-section and longitudinal section intersect, the common line has been drawn to relate the sections. The same scale has been used throughout for ease of comparison.

Bat Erosion in Australian Limestone Caves, 1965, Dwyer, P. D.

The clustering areas of bent-winged bats in limestone caves are frequently stained and etched. This staining is very intense, and covers large areas at breeding caves present in Palaeozoic limestones. Erosion of limestone is very conspicuous in these caves. Staining is not intense at breeding caves in Tertiary limestones, but a combination of chemical and mechanical erosion may, in part, account for the depth of dome pits in which the bats cluster. Certain caves that are characterised by extensive guano deposits and by conspicuously eroded and/or stained limestone, but which are currently without large colonies of bats, may represent ancestral breeding caves.

An Introduction to the Yarrangobilly Caves, New South Wales, Australia - Part III, 1966, Rose P. V.

Free Living Mites (Acarina) in Australian Caves, 1966, Hamiltonsmith, Elery

Caves and Caving in Australia, 1966, Rose P. V.

The geographical distribution of Australian cave dwelling Chiroptera., 1966, Hamiltonsmith E.

Of the 56 species of bats currently recorded from Australia, 22 are known to occur in caves. The geographical distribution of each of these species is detailed, and from this data, the species are divided into four groups according to their pattern of distribution. Group I comprises those species found only North of 18°S latitude, all of which either also occur in New Guinea or are closely related to New Guinea species. Group II, including both endemic Australian genera, occurs over that area North of 28°S latitude. This area largely comprises desert or semi-desert terrain, with its characteristics of low humidity and a wide range between extremes of temperature. Group III occurs in the Eastern Coastal Region, with one species extending to a limited degree along both Northern and Southern Coasts. Although temperature is extremely varied over this range, there are common environmental factors of moderate to high humidity and a moderate to low range of temperature variation. Group IV species are all widespread, in many cases over the whole continent, are all members of the Vespertilionidae, and occur in caves only occasionally or only in certain parts of their range. These species are more commonly found in trees or buildings. The possible factors contributing to the origin of these distributional patterns are discussed, and some areas for future investigation suggested.

Hurleya kalamundae n. g. n. sp. (Amphipoda, Gammaridae) from subterranean waters of Western Australia., 1966, Straskraba Milan

A new genus and species of freshwater Gammaridae (Amphipoda) from subterranean waters of Western Australia is described, Hurleya kalamundae n. g. n. sp. The genus apparently represents an aberrant line of the Crangonyx group of Gammaridae.

Breeding Caves and Maternity Colonies of the Bent-Winged Bat In South-Eastern Australia, 1966, Dwyer P. D. , Hamiltonsmith E.

Eight breeding Caves of Miniopterus schreibersi (Kuhl) are described from South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Southern Queensland, in terms of their structure, the location of nursery areas at which juveniles are deposited after birth, and their physical environments. Maternity colonies are found at these caves through spring, summer and early autumn. Established colonies range from about 15,000 to 200,000 bats at peak size. These individuals are predominantly adult females and their young. Adult males are conspicuous only at the single South Australian breeding cave. Births occur from approximately the beginning of December to mid-January at all colonies except that in South Australia, where a birth period is evident between mid-October to late-November. Artificial warming, as a consequence of bat activity, appears to be characteristic of these Miniopterus schreibersi breeding caves. It is suggested that this may have functional significance in facilitating adequate development of juveniles, and that the habit could be a reflection of the tropical ancestry of this species.

Old Napier Downs Cave, west Kimberly, Western Australia, 1966, Jennings, J. N.

Although small caves are numerous in the limestone Ranges of the Fitzroy Basin in West Kimberly, (sic, actually Kimberley) large and long caves are few on the basis of present knowledge, and reasons for this paucity are ready to find (Jennings, 1962). Of all the known caves, The Tunnel has probably the greatest geomorphological interest (Jennings and Sweeting, 1963a), though it offers little apparent prospect for further exploration. The string of caves ending in Cave Spring in Bugle Gap (Jennings and Sweeting, 1963b) seemed more promising in this latter respect when examined in 1959 and D.C. Lowry (Personal Communication) reports finding considerable extension to one of these caves in a recent visit. Although the cave to be discussed here - Old Napier Downs Cave - is not very large in terms of its known dimensions and a brief reference to it has already been made (Jennings and Sweeting, 1963b, p.27), fuller description in a journal more readily accessible to Australian speleologists and publication of a survey are justified because of the prospects for further exploration that the cave itself and its neighbourhood present.

Hand Paintings In Caves (With Special Reference to Aboriginal Hand Stencils From Caves on the Nullarbor Plain, Southern Australia), 1966, Lane Edward A. , Richards Aola M.

This paper discusses hand stencils and imprints found in caves and rock shelters throughout the world, and considers their possible origin and significance. It discusses the paleolithic hand paintings of France and Spain, and presents some of the meanings attributed by various authors to this form of art. Particular mention is made to mutilation found in many of the hand stencils. Reference is made to historic and recent examples of these hand paintings. Australian aboriginal hand paintings in limestone caves and rock shelters are also considered and their meanings discussed. The similarity of Australian and European hand imprints is pointed out. Special reference is made to hand stencils found in caves on the Nullarbor Plain, Southern Australia. It appears that stencils in Abrakurrie Cave show the deepest penetration of aboriginal art yet recorded inside caves in Australia.

Speleochronology, 1966, Ollier, C. D.

Speleochronolgy is a study of the age of caves and their contents. At the present time the International Commission for Speleology is collecting data, and as the Australian representative on the Commission, the author would like to hear from anyone with information that may be relevant to speleochronology in Australia or in neighbouring countries. This paper shows some of the aims and methods of the subject and indicates the type of information that may be useful.