Faunal records in Norwegian karst caves

Until recently, the amount of published information available about the fauna in Norwegian karst caves has been very limited. The Karst Research Project in Norway, established in 1977, has considerably expanded our knowledge in this field.

As ecosystems, Norwegian karst caves can be divided into two types: 1) open systems – connecting directly to the surface, with rivers or brooks entering through discrete openings. Most animals are surface or surface-related forms which may survive but rarely can reproduce underground. True cavernicoles are not often found; 2) infiltration systems – are fed by seepage water from overlying material, and show a more complex and interesting cave ecosystem, including troglophilic and troglobitic forms (which, with few exceptions, are invertebrates). Vertebrate data from caves in Norway consist of fossils and unfossilized bone remains, usually of mammals. These represent accidentals from stream and pit-fall traps, as well as remains of predator dens.

Two on-going research projects in Norway arc: 1) the Ecosystem Study in Bevergrotta – sampling of the environment and contents has been continued for several years, and has shown this to be one of the most significant cave ecosystems in Norway; 2) Mammalian Remnants in Caves – sampling is still in the preliminary stage, and has collected only exposed remains. The data at present indicate bones of 5700 years old or younger. Clearly deeper sampling over a broad geographic area needs to be done.