Biospeleology

High school (ages 12+)
Animals & Nature

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/biospeleology

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific field?Biospeleology is the study of cave-dwelling organisms (troglobites)
2. What is the primary energy source?Cave ecosystems rely on allochthonous organic matter from the surface
3. Why do cave animals lose their eyes and color?In caves there is no light, so eyes and pigment are not useful. Over time, these animals grow smaller eyes or none at all, and they become lighter or colorless.
4. How do cave animals get food when there is no light?Food comes from outside the cave. Leaves, dead animals, or dissolved organic matter fall in and become the base of the cave food web.

Biospeleology: The scientific discipline dedicated to the study of life within cave environments.
Troglobite: An animal species that lives its entire life cycle exclusively in subterranean caves.
Allochthonous: Material (like organic matter) that originates from outside a particular ecosystem, such as from the surface into a cave.