Riverbluff Cave
Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates The Riverbluff Cave is a paleontological site discovered in the United States, near Springfield, Missouri. The entrance is filled with stalactites, stalagmites and columns. The cave is approximately 830,000 years old (making it the oldest known fossil cave site in the US[1]) and Template:Cvt long, featuring Pleistocene fossils, notably of the short-faced bear (Arctodus simus) the largest bear species on the Earth (around 5–6 feet tall at the shoulder and weighing in the area of Template:Cvt).[2]
The cave is located in the widespread karst landscape of the Springfield Plateau of the western Missouri Ozarks and developed within the soluble Mississippian limestones of the region. It was unveiled accidentally on September 11, 2001, when engineers were blasting for a new road..[3]
The cave is not open to the public, but is the world's second cave to be wired for virtual tours.[4] The Riverbluff Cave Field House opened in 2009 with exhibits of fossils from Riverbluff Cave and from around the world.[5]
Approximately Template:Cvt from the cave is a museum which holds multiple rocks and fossils.
References
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- ↑ Return to Riverbluff Cave, Matt Forir, Springfield Park Board, Becky Baker, Missouri State University
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- ↑ Springfield-Greene County Library Board of Trustees
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External links
- RiverbluffCave.com
- Riverbluff Cave: A Walk through the Ice Age
- The Riverbluff Cave paleontological site and its importance as an educational tool
- Missouri Cave Is an Ice Age Time Capsule from American National Public Radio
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