2009 NSS Project Report

The Caves of Tabasco Project led a 10 day expedition in February of 2009.  The goal was to continue exploration and discovery of caves in south-central Tabasco.  Working with Mexican archaeologist, Eladio Terreros Espinosa, 4 caves were surveyed and added to the project’s database.  A trip report of the findings and completed cave maps were published in the 2009 AMCS Activities Newsletter.

The IX Congreso Nacional de Espeleología was held in Villahermosa, Tabasco from January 30th to February 2nd, 2009.  This Congress was organized by the Sociedad Espeleológica de Tabasco, A.C. and the Unión Mexicana de Agrupaciones Espeleológicas, A.C. The electronic proceedings can be found at: http://www.umae.org/paginas/cong09.php
The following presentations were given in the congress by members of the Caves of Tabasco Project:
- Experiencias de un explorador ingles en México. Peter Lord Attewell
- Petrología y química de las perlas de caverna de la Gruta de las Canicas, Tabasco, México. Houston, S., Mozley, P.S., Campbell, A. y Boston, P, Rosales-Lagarde, L.
- Clasificación del agua de manantiales y su relación con la formación de cavernas en la región de la Sierra de Tabasco, Norte de Chiapas, México. Laura Rosales Lagarde, Penelope Boston, Mike Pullin, Andrew Campbell y Kevin W. Stafford. Earth and Environmental Science Department. New Mexico, Institute of Mining and Technology, National Cave and Karst Research Institute, Chemistry Department, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.

The following presentations related to the Caves of Tabasco Project were presented:
- Rosales-Lagarde, L., Boston, P.J., Campbell, A., Pullin, M., 2009. Villa Luz Park Caves: Speleogenesis Based on Current Stratigraphic and Morphologic Evidence: International Conference "Hypogene Speleogenesis and Karst Hydrogeology of Artesian Basins": Ukranian Institute of Speleology and Karstology, Special Paper 1, 2009, p. 245, Chernivtsy, Ukraine, May 12th to 17th.

- Hose, L.D., 2009, Recent Observations in a Remarkably Dynamic, Sulfide-rich, Hypogenic Cave in Southern Mexico: Proceedings of the 15th International Congress of Speleology, Kerrville, Texas, USA, July 19th to 26th, 1525-1530.
- Jones, D.S. and Maclady J.L., 2009, Biodiversity and Biogeography of Extremely Acidic Sulfidic Cave Snottites: Proceedings of the 15th International Congress of Speleology, Kerrville, Texas, USA, July 19th to 26th,381-383.
- Rosales-Lagarde, L., Boston, P.J., Campbell, A., Ulmer-Scholle, D., Scholle, P., 2009. Regional Geologic Evolutionary Effects on Speleogenesis at Villa Luz Park, Tabasco: Proceedings of the 15th International Congress of Speleology, Kerrville, Texas, USA, July 19th to 26th, 970.

-Mike Pugliese received a mention for two of his pictures from the Caves of Tabasco during the 15th ICS Photo Salon.

Other activities that happened during 2009 are:
- Dr. Amos Frumkin, Professor of Geography at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, visited the Villa Luz cave during July 2009.
-The BBC filming crew took shoots of the Villa Luz Cave and Dr. Diana Northup as part of the program: “Seven wonders of the solar system” from November 21th to 23rd, 2009.
-The web page of the Caves of Tabasco Project start to be developed by Tone Garot and Laura Rosales at: http://www.garot.com/Tabasco/
The web page main objective is to build an accessible media for the Project members, the Tabasco community and any person interested containing a compilation of the information that has been produced related to the Caves of Tabasco Project.

Articles published related to the Caves of Tabasco:
- Padur, L., Wedekind, J.,  Ozturk, O., Streit, B., Tiedemann2, R., Plath, M., 2009, Do audience effects lead to relaxed male sexual harassment?: Behaviour, 146, 1739-175.
- Riesch, R., Plath, M., García de León, F.J. , and Schlupp, I., 2009, Convergent life-history shifts: toxic environments result in big babies in two clades of poeciliids: Naturwissenschaften.