Cave Invertibates

Obligate cave-dwelling animals (Troglo-and stigobionts) represent quite specific group of animals. They underwent a number of morphologi¬cal and ecophysiological adaptations for living in the cave environment, where there is a complete darkness, constant temperature, high humid¬ity and low predatory pressure (Pricop & Negrea, 2009). Obligate cave-dwelling animals can be eyeless and pigmentless, have elongated legs and antennae equipped with well-developed sensitive apparatus. They have low rate of metabolism and continuous activity (Pricop & Negrea, 2009). Cave ecosystems are one of the most fragile ecosystems on the Earth (El¬liott, 2000; Hamilton-Smith & Eberhard, 2000; Krajick 2001). Sensitivity of bats and other cavernicoles (obligate cave dwelling organisms) is caused by their vulnerability to human disturbance (Judson Wynne & Pleytez, 2005). Due to the fact that many troglobitic species are endemic to a single cave with low population numbers, most troglobite populations are considered as imperiled (Krajick, 2001). Despite cavernicoles species sensitivity to distur¬bance, cave ecosystems are poorly understood (Culver et al., 2004).