The Lava Cave
There are different types of caves. This article will focus on Lava Caves also known as Lava Tubes.
While researching caves for my book The Gauntlet of Power Resurrection, I found some intriguing information. Most lava caves are shallow, some are buried by newer lava flows. Occasionally, new lava may fill an older existing tube destroying it. Many lava caves are single tubes that can extend for miles. Sometimes lava tubes can be quite complex with passage splits and junctions, multiple levels and even sudden drop offs. All of which reflect how the lava flowed and formed.
There were a lot of things I was unaware of when researching for this article. Lava caves are born of fire, high on mountains where they often form or in cold regions where they can contain ice. Caves are very well insulated with constant temperatures reflecting the average temperature of the region where they form. Summer high temperatures and winter lows have almost no effect underground.
Lava tubes in cold places eventually become cold once the volcanic eruption ends. This means they become cold enough for ice to form. In some instances, the shape of cave passages may make a trap for cold air that sinks into the tube in winter. It remains cold through the summer. These caves lack stalactites and stalagmites, but can have large, spectacular ice formations.
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The Raccoon: Description of the Perceived "Animal Bandit"
Raccoons are medium-sized mammals with chubby, pear-shaped bodies. They are gray, silver, and snowy white all over. Across the eyes, there's an appearance of what looks like a black ‘bandit’s mask’. White patches appear on the forehead and muzzle, and a rusty trace of color to the shoulders. The long, bushy tail has four to seven dark bands.
It has dexterous hands. Each hand and foot has five fingers and toes. Common raccoons are stocky animals with short legs and small, rounded ears.
Its paws resemble human hands to some extent. Their toes are flexible helping them to grab, hold and pull things apart.
What is the atmosphere like in most caves?
The quality of cave air is usually good. The air’s often cool temperature gives it a fresh feeling many people enjoy. Doctors in several countries recommend Speleotherapy for several ailments, occasionally prescribing sitting in a cave to breathe the air.
Karst caves formed in carbonate rocks (limestone, dolomite, and marble) occasionally have slightly elevated levels of carbon dioxide in the air. As water and air move down through fractures in the rock into a cave, they carry carbon dioxide generated in the soil and released by plants through their roots. The typical levels of carbon dioxide are low and not noticed by visitors.
The significant presence of other gases in caves is uncommon to rare. Examples include methane from the decomposition of large volumes of organic material which washed into a cave, ammonia from large deposits of bat guano, and a variety of possible gases associated with geothermal areas.
The temperature of a cave is usually close to the average annual temperature for the region where it’s located. For example, caves in Texas can be as warm as 70º F. Caves in Missouri might be between 55º F and 60º F. Caves in Wisconsin might be a chilly 50º F.
Air pressure inside a cave always tries to equalize with the outside air pressure. If air pressure outside the cave is greater, air moves into the cave and vice versa. Also, winter air is colder and thus denser than cave air, moving down cave floors and pushing warmer air out of a cave along with the ceiling.
References
Traits of the Raccoon
Raccoons are curious, resourceful, uniquely intelligent problem solvers. Give raccoons a puzzle and, as long as there's food involved, they'll usually find a way to solve it.
They are some of the most adaptable mammals in the United States. Raccoons can occupy both rural and urban areas as well as live in different types of climates. They're also known to thrive in suburban environments as well. City dwellers may notice urban raccoons reach special levels of cunning. This may be because urban raccoons are forced to outsmart human-made obstacles on a regular basis. Scientists have found through experimentation that urban raccoons have learned to avoid major intersections as well as solve unconventional problems. A good example of an unconventional problem is how some raccoons have successfully learned to open the lids of trash cans.
Raccoons also have excellent night vision and an acute sense of hearing. They "see" with their hands. While most animals use either sight, sound, or smell to hunt, raccoons rely on their sense of touch to locate items of interest. By nature, raccoons are not social creatures. During the day, they sleep in dens in trees. During cold winter periods, they may sleep for an extended period, but do not hibernate.
Additionally, raccoons are great swimmers. Their nimble fingers are used to feel through the bottoms of streams for food, where it's further cleaned. They also use their agile fingers to climb trees and open containers. On occasion, these sly, inquisitive creatures also find their way into homes hunting for tasty treats. In areas frequented regularly, they even dig latrines.
So, what was the most interesting fact I learned during my research about the traits of raccoons? Answer: I was aware raccoons are very agile climbers but did you know they've been known to scale skyscrapers?
As for me, learning this fact was a "wow" moment. Honorable mention: The digging of latrines.
What about you? Did find something interesting or learn anything new about the traits of raccoons you weren't aware of before today? If so, please share.