Fauna

In June 2008 I spent 14 days caving in the Battambang province of Cambodia. All the caves were dry. It was interesting to see some cave fauna, most of which is very similar to that in Malaysia. We found a few bat caves, most of which we didn't enter, because the stench of guano was overpowering. One cave in particular smelt of pure ammonia. The whip spiders seemed larger than those found in Malaysia.

An expedition report has been published in BCRA Speleology, 2009, No 13. Extensive information on the caves of Cambodia can be found in the book Atlas of the Great Caves and the Karst of Southeast Asia.
See also cave bats.

2 types of cricket :

cricket-Battambang_446.jpgcricket



Millipedes and a centipede :

millipedes-Battambang_441.jpg millipedes-Battambang_442.jpg centipede-Battambang_375.jpg
These snails are probably accidental visitors as the cave has several open entrances. They are possibly ariophantids, probably related to Macrochlamys (info from Dr M.Schilthuizen) :
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spider - juvenile Heteropoda sp. identified by P.Jaeger at Senckenberg

These Amblypygids, or whip spiders, seem larger than their Malaysian cousins :

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whip%20spider%20Battambang_337_lp.jpg whip%20spider%20Battambang_392_lp.jpg whip%20spider%20Battambang_396_lp.jpg


This snake is an accidental visitor to the cave. It was identified by Klaus Schulz as Oligodon taeniatus (Striped Kukri Snake) :

snake%20Battambang_140.jpg snake%20Battambang_142.jpg




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This dog came caving with us, then had a rest when we were too slow surveying :

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On May 2 2018 there was an article in PhnomPenhPost on bats, "Human disturbances threaten conservation of cave bats in Cambodia, study says". By Yesenia Amaro.

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