Cave

Pivot Rock Spring, Coconino National Forest, Arizona.

Pivot Rock Spring, Coconino National Forest, Arizona.

Emergence Setting and Hydrology

Emergence in a cave in mature to extreme karst with sufficiently large conduits.

For Example: Pivot Rock Cave, AZ (pictured)

Description

Cave springs, most common in karst terrain, emerge entirely within a cave environment. Although there are many different types of karst features (Ford and Williams 2007), cave springs are most common in the "mature" to "extreme" karst ground conditions of Waltham and Fookes (2003), with large conduits that allow for groundwater emergence and in "free draining or dammed" type karst springs (Ford and Williams 2007). Cave springs ecosystems can support a wide range of biota.

Sketch of Gushet spring type. A=aquifer; I=impermeable stratum; S=spring source. The inverted triangle represents the water table or piezometric surface. Fault lines are shown where appropriate. Drawing by Victor O. Leshyk www.victorleshyk.com

Sketch of Gushet spring type. A=aquifer; I=impermeable stratum; S=spring source. The inverted triangle represents the water table or piezometric surface. Fault lines are shown where appropriate. Drawing by Victor O. Leshyk www.victorleshyk.com