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Newswise — Famous for its breathtaking mountain landscapes and cliffside Buddhist monasteries, the small South Asian kingdom of Bhutan is also home to miles upon miles of caves that have been shrouded in mystery…until now.

In the first-ever scientific exploration of its kind in Bhutan, a team of researchers and forest rangers led by NAU assistant research professor Jut Wynne is uncovering how large and small animals use caves, how many yet-to-be-discovered species insects and spiders live inside and how Bhutanese communities can preserve the caves’ delicate ecosystems for future generations. 

“This is an unwritten chapter of the country’s natural history,” said Wynne, who is affiliated with the Department of Biological Sciences and NAU’s (CAWL). “This research will likely reshape our understanding of cave ecosystems across the Himalayas, and perhaps Southeast Asia, with discoveries ranging from new species of subterranean-adapted arthropods to the secretive cave habits of tigers and leopards.”

Wynne said the research has been made possible thanks to support from CAWL, the National Cave and Karst Institute, the Royal University of Bhutan, The Explorers Club and Rolex.  

The ecologist is no stranger to caves. Before traveling to Bhutan in mid-March, Wynne had made six trips to the isolated Polynesian island of Rapa Nui to study cave-dwelling insects that exist nowhere else in the world, . Wynne’s cave research has also taken him . 

Now back in Flagstaff after two weeks of research and meetings with conservationists in Bhutan, Wynne is excited to dig into the researchers’ initial findings. There’s a lot to unpack.

New species galore 

While in Bhutan, one of Wynne’s goals was to unearth as many new species of subterranean-adapted arthropods—insects, spiders and other invertebrates—as possible. While scientists have already discovered about 1.8 million arthropod species, they believe there could be as many as 5 to 30 million more. Some of those undiscovered species undoubtedly live in the caves of Bhutan. 

“We know virtually no work has been done in Bhutan,” Wynne said. “If you’re the first team to collect subterranean-adapted species in a cave, and you’re in a place as remote as Bhutan, you’re likely to discover mostly new species.”

Wynne said he and his colleagues have already identified more than 60 different species of arthropods from other parts of the world. He believes they’ll soon be able to share information about dozens of never-before-described types of invertebrates from Bhutan as well. 

I spy with my digital eye…

There’s little doubt that bears, tigers, leopards and other endangered species wander in and out of Bhutan’s caves. But what do they do while they’re inside? A series of trail cameras installed outside of and within caves may provide some insights into that question for ecologists and conservationists.

“While much is known about the subterranean proclivities of African leopards, virtually nothing is known about how leopards and other species use caves throughout Asia,” Wynne said. “These cameras could shed some much-needed light.” 

With help from savvy locals, Wynne and his colleagues traveled up steep, treacherous roads in the remote villages of southern Bhutan to install discreet cameras near and within the mouths of caves. Over the next six months, they’ll review regular video footage that will help them understand when animals like Asiatic black bears and brush-tailed porcupines visit these caves, why they go there and how long they stay. Doing so will provide Bhutanese forest rangers and conservationists with some of the information needed to help protect wildlife species.

Building a bat call library 

While in Bhutan, Wynne spent time documenting where and how bats live inside the caves. His team set up bat call detectors near their study caves and even at their guesthouses as they traveled across the country. As they were mist-netting bats most nights, they also recorded calls from bats as they were released. 

The data they collected will be used to help develop a bat call library for Bhutan—which didn’t exist before this study. 

Mapping the caves 

As Wynne and his colleagues collected arthropods, noted natural features and recorded bat and other animal observations, Patricia Kambesis of Western Kentucky University followed them every step of the way. Considered one of the world’s foremost cave cartographers, Kambesis will develop maps of all four caves the researchers visited, which will help them visualize cave microclimates and show exactly where animals roam and roost within the cave systems. 

“If I just tell you, ‘I saw an Abert’s squirrel in Coconino National Forest,’ how helpful is that? Not very helpful, because the Coconino National Forest is huge,” Wynne said. “But if I had a map, I could tie the squirrel to a specific place within the forest, and that would be much more helpful. It’s the same with caves—we need to know specifically where we found something within a cave; that way, we can make more specific management recommendations to those responsible for protecting these resources.”

Protecting future cave-dwellers

Caves are sacred to the Bhutanese, a mostly Buddhist population. At the mouth of one cave, a local resident told Wynne that many Buddhists believed seven months of meditation in that place was just as powerful as seven years of meditation in Tibet. At another cave they studied, a monk had been meditating there since 2016. 

As a result, many choose to display their religious devotion by leaving offerings inside the caves. They’re often made of flowers, food, candles or incense—materials that could potentially negatively impact the animals living there.

“If I put on my science hat, I’d say we shouldn’t be doing that,” Wynne said. “But these aren’t my caves; they belong to the people of Bhutan, and they’re honoring these sacred sites with offerings.”

Wynne’s job over the next several months will be to analyze how human disturbance of these caves—from offerings to wooden ladders to footsteps through mud—and come up with conservation recommendations that strike a compromise between protecting biological resources while respecting the country’s Buddhist culture.

“One fundamental precept of Buddhism is to do no harm and recognize the importance of all beings,” he said. “I think if the locals knew some of these activities were detrimental, they’d reconsider. Maybe they’ll be willing to make offerings only in specific areas of the caves or avoid entering caves during certain times of the year to protect bats.”

Wynne said that by mapping the kingdom’s caves, cataloging its cave-dwelling species and monitoring wildlife behavior, the research team will help underscore the urgency of cave protection both locally and worldwide. As the globe warms, populations increase and tourism to the Himalayas continues to pick up, cave habitats like those in Bhutan face escalating threats.

“Our goal is to share the discoveries of this research, emphasize the importance of Bhutan’s fragile biodiversity and explore the potential for meaningful protective cave management,” Wynne said. “Insights from the team of international researchers and local conservationists will serve to lay the foundation for safeguarding these sensitive ecosystems.”

Jill Kimball | NAU Communications
(928) 523-2282 | [email protected]