Australian cave animals

22 May is the UN International Day for Biological Diversity

Join the celebration with our Cave Animal Word Search!

Out of sight and out of mind…cave animals are rarely thought about by most humans.

Did you know that there’s an array of fascinating animals that live in caves. They’ve developed special adaptations that enable them to live in the pitch-black and extreme environments of the underground world.

Cave animals need more humans to take an interest in them.

Read more or explore the featured animals below.

Explore the featured animals

Cave beetles

Meet the dark side of Beetle-mania
Unlike their above-ground relatives, cave beetles do not fly and may not even have eyes. In the black world of the underground, where it’s too dark to see, cave beetles find their food and navigate around with long antennae and sensory hairs on their legs and body.

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Up next: Nullarbor Blind Cave Spider

Ghost bat

Macroderma gigas

On the brink of extinction
Ghost Bat populations have fallen dramatically and are now limited to three areas of northern Australia. The preferred habitat of Ghost Bats has been seriously reduced by farming, mining, feral pests and invasive weeds and the species is in danger of becoming extinct.

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Up next: Glow-worms

Glow-worms

Arachnocampa genus

Spellbinding lights that lure to death
The enchanting, blue-coloured lights of glow-worms delight cave visitors and are the larval stage of a small fly. There are eight species of glow-worm in Australia. A glow-worm’s light lures flying insects to its ‘fishing line’ snares where they are trapped to become the glow-worm’s next meal.

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Up next: Tasmanian Cave Spider

Tasmanian Cave Spider

Hickmania troglodytes

There’s a lot to know about spiders
The amazing Tasmanian Cave Spider is one of the last survivors from a very old family tree. Its ancestors were living on Planet Earth a long time before people evolved. Tasmanian Cave Spiders have ancient genes which could perhaps lead to cures for human diseases like cancer and fungal infections.

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Up next: Australian cave crickets

Australian cave crickets

Rhaphidophoridae

Eating a leg when food is scarce!
Cave crickets will leap towards a perceived intruder as a sign of aggression. Nearly sightless, their long antennae enable them to feel their way in the underground blackness. They store protein in their long rear legs and, when food is short, will eat a leg for sustenance.

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