### [Early History of Jewel Cave]{.underline}

The human history of Jewel Cave National Monument is rather nebulous to
begin with. What little physical evidence that has been found here
suggests that there was very limited use of this specific area by native
peoples.

Who first discovered Jewel Cave cannot be determined from the records.
We give credit to the Michaud brothers, Frank and Albert, since they
were the first to acknowledge it and lay claim to it. Reports were that
they heard the cave exhaling out through a small hole (due to barometric
winds exiting the cave) and decided to investigate. On October 31^st^,
1900, Frank and Albert, along with their father, and Charles Bush
(Bushe) filed a claim for \"Placer and Water Location Rights\". They
opened the entrance area by blasting, began to "work" the cave, and
constructed a wooden mine entrance structure.

![](media/image1.png){width="1.725in" height="2.7in"}**[Frank and Albert
Michaud]{.underline}**

It was 1900 when Frank Michaud, returning from the Alaskan gold rush of
1898 met his brother Albert in Libby, Montana and headed to South Dakota
together. The Michaud family had a homestead west of Custer. In route to
the homestead, they entered Hell Canyon where their horses were spooked
by a strange sound coming out of the hillside near the top of the
rimrock. The brothers found a small hole with a cold blast of air coming
out. Having no equipment with them at the time, they returned to the
site later with some tools and dynamite and enlarged that opening. What
they discovered were crawlways and low-ceilinged rooms coated with
beautiful calcite crystals that sparkled like \"jewels\" in their
lantern light.

The Michauds probably hoped that this hole in the ground would turn
profitable for them and filed the \"Jewel Tunnel Lode\" claim in Custer
on the 18^th^ day of September 1900. Unfortunately for the Michauds,
there is no commercial value of calcite crystal and valuable minerals
such as gold are not found in limestone. Still, they held out hope that
the natural wonder they had stumbled upon might be developed as a
tourist attraction. During the following decade, they removed enough
material (probably calcite crystal and perhaps the mineral manganese) to
be able to say that they were \"working their mine\" and keep their
claim. Whatever the outcome of the sales of crystals or other minerals
from Jewel Cave, it was evidently not enough to continue extraction. The
brothers tried another avenue of enterprise. They constructed a trail of
sorts within the cave, built a two-story lodge up on the rim of Hell
Canyon to attract people from nearby towns, and even organized the
\"Jewel Cave Dancing Club\" in 1902 in hopes of attracting tourists to
their cave. However, a lack of people in this region, and the difficulty
of travel here, with no graded roads to the cave and the scarcity of
automobiles at that time made the tourist venture anything but a
financial success. Eventually all efforts to capitalize on the cave
failed and activities at the cave site were shut down.

Frank Michaud bought out Charles Bush\'s share of the cave in 1905 for
\$300. For a while, Frank continued to work at the cave, exploring and
keeping up the annual assessment work. By 1910, Albert Michaud had left
Custer County and the United States and became a citizen of Canada,
deeding his interest in the Jewel Lode claim to Frank. Finally, in 1921
Frank Michaud moved to Arizona for health reasons. Then, while visiting
his brothers in Canada in 1926, Frank contracted pneumonia and passed
away. In 1928 the family of the now-deceased Frank Michaud sold their
Jewel Cave claim to the federal government for \$500. When the brothers
quit "working" the cave, they closed off the entrance with a wooden door
that they locked to keep the cave from being disturbed further. However,
Jewel Cave had gained sufficient notoriety and news spread.

**[Monument Establishment / Civilian Conservation Corps]{.underline}**

By 1908, word of the newly discovered Jewel Cave reached beyond the
Black Hills and to Washington, D.C., where it caught the attention of
President Theodore Roosevelt. On February 7 of that year, President
Roosevelt declared Jewel Cave a National Monument. By his presidential
proclamation, Roosevelt did this and more. He brought about the
protection of the cave and made a federal reservation out of the land
above and surrounding it. The Michaud brothers had tried to have the
land set aside as a game preserve from the time of discovery. In 2008,
Jewel Cave National Monument celebrated its 100^th^ anniversary with the
theme *"Generations of Discovery."*

In 1928, a company formed by the Lion\'s Club of Newcastle, Wyoming, and
the Businessman\'s Club of Custer, South Dakota leased the cave from the
government for the purpose of offering tours. Previous claims on the
cave by the Michauds had to be settled, now that it had been set aside
as a National Monument. With the waiving of claim to the cave, the new
company, the \"Jewel Cave Corporation\" began providing tours. Money for
the initial development of operations was derived from shareholder
money, with shares selling for \$25 each. The Corporation charged \$0.25
for admission and continued to provide tours up until 1939. Rangers from
nearby Wind Cave National Park provided a government presence during the
summer months beginning in 1935.

![](media/image2.png){width="2.5166666666666666in" height="1.45in"}In
1929, a decade of economic depression had descended upon the United
States and by 1933 nearly 25% of the country\'s workforce was
unemployed. President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Civilian
Conservation Corps that year in response to this emergency, putting
young men to work throughout the U.S. and accomplishing projects such as
dam construction, road building and fire fighting. Several CCC camps
were established throughout the Black Hills, including at nearby Wind
Cave National Park.

A spur camp of the Wind Cave CCC operation was set up at Jewel Cave
National Monument to construct a log cabin ranger station/residence,
build a trail from this structure to the cave entrance, and to
significantly improve the cave tour trail. The residence allowed the
first permanent National Park Service ranger to be based at Jewel Cave,
beginning in 1941.

Except for a brief period of closure during WWII, NPS rangers staffed
the cabin and cave tour operation. Then, in the late 1950s, significant
discoveries were made within the cave, which lead to development of a
new Visitor Center and cave tour route.

**[Recent History]{.underline}**

At the beginning of 1959, a total of approximately 1/2 mile (.8 km) of
Jewel Cave was known. While beautifully decorated with calcite spar
crystals, the tour route was short, and some wondered whether this small
cave was truly of national significance. Then a geologist by the name of
Dwight Deal enlisted the aid of two rock-climbing enthusiasts, Herb and
Jan Conn, to help him explore and map within Jewel Cave.

**[Dwight Deal]{.underline}**

In 1959, Dwight Deal, a recent graduate from Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute in New York, came to the Black Hills. Fresh out of college,
Dwight had taken a job with an oil company in nearby Wyoming. He was an
active member of the National Speleological Society, and had plenty of
both enthusiasm and scientific knowledge to fuel his desire to explore
caves.

Dwight\'s job allowed him weekends free to devote to cave exploration,
and he had become aware of Jewel Cave through a group of cavers from
Colorado who had been surveying nearby Wind Cave. He joined them one
weekend for a special trip into Jewel Cave; he then approached the
National Park Service about getting permission to continue surveying
there. He was granted a Special Use Permit, but was told that in order
to use it in Jewel, he would have to have at least two other people go
with him. Dwight had become acquainted with Herb and Jan Conn when they
were all still in the east, and knew they were now in the Hills. He
persuaded the Conns to join him.

On the first few trips, Dwight instructed Herb and Jan in the art of
surveying the cave while exploring its passageways. By the spring of
1961, Dwight had moved away from the Black Hills, but not before over 5
miles (8 km) of cave had been mapped. He returned in the summer of 1961
to work on a master\'s thesis on the geology of Jewel Cave for the
University of Wyoming.

![](media/image3.png){width="1.3923611111111112in" height="1.6in"}In May
of 1962, Dwight Deal did an inspection tour of the proposed new cave
tour route. It was a 4-hour trip to the \"Formation Room\", but he was
so impressed by the beauty of the dripstone deposits on top of the
crystals that he recommended in writing to the park superintendent that
an effort is made to provide public access to this area. His efforts are
rewarded with each tour group that enters that room on the Scenic Tour
and gasps in delight at this impressive stop on the route.

[Herb & Jan Conn]{.underline}

Herb and Jan Conn began a lifelong connection to the Black Hills of
South Dakota in 1946. Both were born and raised on the East Coast, and
during WWII, Herb worked as an electrical engineer for the Navy
Department in Washington, D.C. Although this adventurous young couple
had first been exposed to cave exploration in West Virginia, their real
love at that time was rock climbing, a hobby they had developed on the
cliffs of the Potomac. In 1946 they decided to leave the Washington,
D.C. area and head west to practice rock-climbing full time.

Over the next few years Herb and Jan Conn traveled extensively, working
wherever and whenever they needed to support their climbing. They worked
in resorts, factories, for a furniture manufacturer, and for a venetian
blind company. They originally planned to settle in Colorado, where they
knew the mountain climbing opportunities were abundant. But 1949 found
them in the Black Hills of South Dakota, where they were convinced that
western South Dakota's great weather would give them an opportunity to
spend more days mountain climbing. So they bought 20 acres of land four
miles from Custer and settled in. One of Jan\'s earliest significant
climbing feats in this area was her accomplishment of being the first
woman to free-climb Devils Tower.

In 1959, geologist and caver Dwight Deal had done some exploration in a
small, but pretty cave called Jewel. He needed some companions who might
help him continue his exploration trips there and turned to his friends,
Herb and Jan. He asked if they would be interested in grubbing around
underground and, after thinking it over, they replied they would try it
\"once\". That one trip turned into a passion of exploring Jewel Cave
that lasted for over 20 years.

The Conns were particularly enthusiastic about exploring and mapping the
cave, and by 1961 had extended the known length of the cave to over 15
miles. What actually seduced the Conns into continuing their caving
trips in Jewel Cave was the challenge of surveying: measuring and
sketching the convoluted passageways of this twisting, turning cave
captured and held their attention. From 1959 to 1979, Herb and Jan
mapped 62.36 miles of the interior of Jewel Cave.

The National Park Service was intrigued by their reports of high, narrow
passageways, huge rooms and unusual speleothems (cave decorations). The
National Park Service became interested in the potential of developing
additional tour routes to ease congestion in the existing tour area and
provide an opportunity for the public to enjoy the impressive, recently
discovered rooms, passageways, and cave decorations. The Conns suggested
that the part of the cave they had been surveying might prove perfect
for development of a new tour route. The Conns initially discovered the
Scenic Cave Tour route in 1961-1962.

In addition to assisting with the construction of this new tour route,
Herb Conn also designed the lighting system and dramatic placement of
lights still in use today. The cave winds that enticed the explorers
further into the cave fascinated Herb, and in 1966 he produced an
important scientific report explaining reasons for these barometric
winds. The Conn\'s book, \"The Jewel Cave Adventure\" serves not only as
a record of their years of cave exploration here, but as an exciting
tale of adventure even for the non-cavers.

As for their public service in the development of a great national
monument, they are inclined to shrug that off, too. "If people do what
they really want to do, \"said Jan, "then they will eventually
contribute something to the world."

![](media/image4.png)**[The Scenic Tour Construction]{.underline}**

The initial discovery of the \"Scenic Area\" of the cave took place in
1961. But because the original boundaries of the National Monument dated
back to a time when most of the cave was unknown, the \"new\" areas
within the cave were actually outside of those boundaries, under U. S.
Forest Service lands. In order to proceed with plans to develop a new
tour route and to build a Visitor Center, a land swap with the Forest
Service was accomplished in 1965, changing the monument boundaries.
![](media/image5.png){width="2.4784722222222224in"
height="3.7in"}Construction of the present Scenic area cave trail, the
elevator shafts, one elevator, the Visitor Center, maintenance area and
parking lot began in 1966 and took nearly 5 1/2 years to complete. The
Scenic Cave Tour route and Visitor Center were first opened for touring
on May 28, 1972.

Exploration of the cave continues, providing park managers with an
increasing depth and breath of information to use for future protection
of this magnificent resource.

**[Current Cave Explorers]{.underline}**

While Herb and Jan Conn were still actively exploring and mapping Jewel
Cave in the late 1970s, a graduate student from South Dakota School of
Mines and Technology, Mike Wiles, began accompanying them on caving
trips. In 1979, Mike began a career with the National Park Service,
first as a Volunteer-in-Parks, then as a seasonal park ranger. In 1980,
he began an apprenticeship of sorts with the Conns. This sharpened his
caving skills, heightened his awareness of cave ecology, and introduced
him to the world of underground surveying and mapping. By mid-1981, the
Conns had effectively retired from exploring Jewel Cave, leaving Mike to
take the lead in ensuring continuing exploration.

Over the years, Mike has organized exploration, survey and mapping of
Jewel Cave by teams of interested and qualified cavers from throughout
the U.S. Today, as Cave Management Specialist at Jewel Cave, Mike is
responsible for compiling all the information gleaned from caving trips
into an effective management plan.
![](media/image6.png){width="2.6034722222222224in"
height="3.4in"}Exploration of Jewel Cave is allowed by permit only, and
then, only for purposes of survey and mapping, scientific
study/monitoring, restoration of disturbed areas in the cave, or for
other projects specified by the National Park Service in order to
effectively manage this immense underground resource. It is imperative
for the continued protection of Jewel Cave that we continue to learn
where it is in relation to surface features. Inventory and monitoring of
geological, hydrological, and biological features found throughout the
cave allow park managers to track changes and relationships with surface
activities.

Each team of cavers is small, to mitigate any impact that they might
have on delicate cave features or passageways. Ethical caving is
required, with safety of cavers and protection of the resource
paramount.

The physical and mental challenges provided by cave exploration address
a deep-seated human desire to venture beyond the known into the
frontier. But most importantly, the information provided by continuing
exploration helps us understand the complex interrelationships in this
relatively remote part of the natural world.

**[Legislative Background]{.underline}**

On February 7, 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed Jewel Cave
National Monument (1, 273.51 acres) under the authority of the
Antiquities Act (34 Stat. 225, June 8, 1906). The opening paragraph of
the Presidential Proclamation 799 (35 Stat. 2180) stated that:

Whereas, the natural formation, known as the Jewel Cave...is of
scientific interest, and it appears that the public interests would be
promoted by preserving this formation as a National Monument, with as
much land as may be necessary for the proper protection thereof;....

*The USDA Forest Service administered the monument until 1933 when
President Franklin D. Roosevelt transferred administration to the
National Park Service. At that point the monument came under the
guidance of the National Park Service Organic Act of August 25, 1916 (PL
64-235, 16 USC 1) that included the mandate...*

*...*to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and
the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in
such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the
enjoyment of future generations.

*By the mid-1960s, exploration and research indicated that most of the
known cave remained outside the monument boundaries and inaccessible to
most visitors through the cave's historic entrance. On October 9, 1965,
President Lyndon B. Johnson signed Public Law 89-250 (79 Stat. 971) to
revise the boundaries to correspond to the known cave:*

...for the purpose of including within the Jewel Cave National Monument
significant caverns and other geological features beneath lands within
the Black Hills National Forest, adjacent to the national monument, the
boundary of said monument is hereby revised....

*The new monument lands came from the surrounding Black Hills National
Forest. An equal number of acres deleted from the monument status
reverted to the national forest, keeping the monument's total acreage
the same as in the past. Only 11% of the original monument remained
under the management of the National Park Service after this
legislation. Further exploration and research after 1965 indicated that
much of the cave remains outside the monument boundaries under adjacent
national Forest Service land and private property.*

**[Mission of the NPS]{.underline}**

**The mission of the National Park Service at Jewel Cave National
Monument is to preserve Jewel Cave, through management of the surface
and subsurface ecosystems, while providing opportunities for the pursuit
of scientific interests and public enjoyment. The above legislation
created laws to mandate the NPS to preserve and protect both the surface
and subsurface for scientific research and provide for public use and
enjoyment in ways that leave the resources unimpaired for future
generations. At over 141 miles long, Jewel Cave is one of the most
extensive and three-dimensionally complex cave systems in the world.
Jewel Cave is a relatively pristine and largely unexplored frontier.**

**[Jewel Cave National Monument's]{.underline}**

**[Interpretive Themes]{.underline}**

**Interpretive themes *create opportunities* for the public to make
their own *intellectual and emotional connections* to the *meaning and
significance* of the monument.**

1)  The continued health of Jewel Cave depends upon the cooperative
    management of the surface and subsurface resources of the monument
    and neighboring lands and partners.

2)  Continuing exploration and scientific research in Jewel Cave reflect
    both a deep-seated human desire to venture beyond physical and
    intellectual frontiers as well as **an enhanced understanding of the
    cave, and contributes to responsible stewardship by the NPS and its
    neighbors.**

3)  **The preservation of surface and subsurface resources at Jewel Cave
    National Monument contributes to the survival of the Townsends
    big-eared bat and nine other species of bats in the Black Hills.**

4)  **The protection of Jewel Cave National Monument reflects the
    evolution of the 20^th^ century conservation philosophy.**

5)  **Jewel Cave's ponderosa pine forest provides habitat for a variety
    of indigenous wildlife species; represents an important influence on
    conditions within the cave; and provides one of the few
    opportunities in the Black Hills to experience an old-growth
    forest.**

6)  **The relatively pristine condition of Jewel Cave results from its
    rural location, mid-20^th^ century exploration, complex length, and
    small, single entrance.**

7)  **The passive, subtle system of surface resources at Jewel Cave has
    significant impacts on subsurface resources.**

8)  **The combination of uncommon characteristics of Jewel Cave,
    including its geological development, features, speleothems, and
    minerals illustrates the remarkable diversity of caves.**

**[Cave Geology]{.underline}**

Surface features seen at Jewel Cave National Monument hint at the "world
that waits below." Breaking the surface of the ponderosa pine forest are
outcroppings of limestone seen in Hell Canyon. This limestone (CaCO~3~ )
was laid down as the bottom sediment of a shallow sea some 350 million
years ago. Sediments built up from the shells of shellfish and coral
weathering. Eventually the weight of the overlying layers on the layers
below created the limestone in which the present-day cave is located.

About 65 million (plus or minus five million) years before the present,
the Black Hills began to experience a period of uplift. As granite was
pushed up from below the overlying sedimentary layers were buckled
upward into a dome shape. In the process, the limestone began to crack.
The cracking exposed the limestone to air and water. Water itself cannot
dissolve the limestone. With the addition of carbon dioxide (CO~2~ )
from soil acids or decaying materials entering from the surface, the
water becomes acidic. Exposure of the rock to weak acid solutions helps
dissolve the limestone. Over a long period of exposure to these weak
acid solutions, cave passageways were dissolved out.

The next stage of formation was the deposit of the calcite crystals on
the cave walls. Again, the key ingredients were flooding of the cave by
water, weak acid solutions and time. The water was almost stagnate. As
dissolved limestone became concentrated and temperatures began to
increase, the calcite started to precipitate out and crystallize on the
walls. This, too, took a great period of time and as a result, many of
the present-day cave surfaces are coated with calcite crystals.

The cave is still in the process of development. Air currents caused by
"cave breathing" (changes in barometric pressure) have formed and
continue to form or reform surfaces. Water trickles down from the
surface and combines with carbon dioxide in the soil to create a weak
acid. This carbonic acid dissolves the limestone and then re-deposits it
as calcite in the cave to create speleothems\*(secondary cave
formations). However, with the lack of any major flow of water, such as
underground streams, the changes here are very subtle and usually happen
so slowly that they are difficult to see or measure. Listed below are
the cave's speleothems.

![](media/image7.png){width="1.2in"
height="0.9409722222222222in"}**Spar** - \"Dogtooth\" and \"Nailhead\"
calcite spar crystals formed throughout Jewel Cave when standing water,
supersaturated with dissolved minerals, warmed slightly. This change in
temperature allowed calcite to \"come out of solution\", coating
surfaces of the cave with either sharp or rounded spar crystals.

**Stalactites** -- As acidic water enters the cave atmosphere, it can no
longer contain the dissolved minerals it carries. In the case of
stalactites, these come out of solution in the form of a drip formation
from the ceiling of the cave, sometimes resembling an icicle.

**Stalagmites** -- These speleothems might be called the corresponding
formation to the stalactite. They form from the floor upward, usually
directly below a stalactite. There appears to be enough calcite in
solution dripping off the stalactite above to build up a deposit of
minerals in a sort of inverted \"icicle\" on the floor.

**Soda straw stalactite** -- This speleothem, like other stalactites,
hangs from the ceiling. It is hollow in the inside, and uniform in
diameter. It forms as drop upon drop of mineral-laden water falls from
the ceiling and leaves behind ring upon ring of calcite crystal.

**Flowstone** - This speleothem forms when solutions of calcite-laden
water wash over limestone or other existing formations, depositing
calcite that resembles flowing rock.

**Drapery** -- This speleothem hangs down and away from a sloped cave
wall, occurring when water droplets entering the cave from an inclined
ceiling or wall trickle down, leaving a thin film of calcite. It's
curtained or \"drapery\" appearance gives it the name. On the Scenic
tour route, there is a 23-foot drapery called the \"Bacon\".

**Helectites** -- Helectites often resemble twisted tree branches on a
much smaller scale. This speleothem seems to defy gravity as it "bends
and turns\" in all directions. In reality, helectites are probably
formed when droplets of calcite-rich water move outward from a source
via capillary action, depositing minerals.

**Frostwork** -- These crystals of aragonite form from a calcite base in
a needlelike shape radiating out from the calcite base and resembling
water-based frost, hence the name.

**Scintillites** -- These speleothems of very fine quartz crystals were
first discovered in Jewel Cave and have since been found in other caves.
Scintillites consist of a microcrystalline silica core covered by
reddish-brown to transparent quartz crystals.

**Boxwork** --Calcite fills in tiny cracks in the limestone. When
weathering takes place, the limestone, being softer than the
calcite-filled cracks, weathers away first leaving behind the harder
calcite material behind. This speleothem resembles cracks, \"in
relief\".

**Hydromagnesite balloons** -- In some areas of Jewel Cave, delicate
\"balloons\" have formed of the mineral hydromagnesite (commonly called
moonmilk). These fragile structures resemble pearlescent \"bubble gum
bubbles\". They were first found in Jewel Cave, and have since been
discovered in other caves.

[Hydrology]{.underline}

Earth has been referred to as the "Water Planet"; life on this planet is
water-dependant. Likewise, many geologic structures owe their existence
either directly or indirectly to water. Although directly, water played
a smaller role in the formation of Jewel Cave, indirectly it was the
major factor in its formation.

Here, water picked up carbon dioxide from the soil and seeped slowly
into cracks and fissures in the Pahasapa limestone beneath, becoming
acidic enough to begin dissolving the limestone. There were several
periods of flooding of Jewel Cave, interspersed with periods of
draining. For at least one time, the calcite rich solution remained in
the widened passageways for a long period of time. The result was the
"saturation" of the solution and "precipitation" of the crystals out of
the standing water. The longer the saturated solution remained in place,
the thicker the crystal deposit. Eventually, the water level of the
flooded cave passageways dropped as the water table dropped to its
present level, which is below Jewel Cave.

The next important phase of water\'s influence on Jewel Cave was (and
continues to be) the formation of speleothems. Weakly acidic water
continues to seep in from the surface, slowly dissolving the limestone.
The water may lose its acidity through the process known as
\"degassing\". This occurs when mineral-laden water enters the cave
atmosphere, and loses carbon dioxide (CO~2~ ) in the process. When this
happens, the water can no longer hold the calcite in solution and the
calcite is deposited in the form of speleothems (calcite spar crystals,
stalactites, stalagmites etc.) on cave surfaces.

Weathering may occur when air currents carrying water vapor move through
the cave. This water vapor can pick up carbon dioxide from the cave
atmosphere, becoming slightly acidic in the process. As the air moves
through the passageways, it may dissolve the limestone and calcite,
altering the cave\'s appearance. Some speleothems may owe their
formation to this process (boxwork, hydromagnesite balloons, and
frostwork are examples). Weathering due to this subtle dissolution
process may actually weaken the bond between the calcite spar crystal
coating and the limestone surface beneath. Sections of the coating may
be more susceptible to falling when this occurs.

On a much larger scale, the draining of water from the cave may have
caused some of the ceilings to collapse. This would have left large
rooms or higher-ceilinged passageways. Today no large bodies of standing
water or running water (streams or rivers) are known to exist in Jewel
Cave, but the immensity of the cave certainly doesn't rule them out.

The quality of water associated with Jewel Cave plays a pivotal role in
maintaining its pristine character in the future. Because any water
seeping into the limestone from above will have some impact on the cave
below, there is concern for the quality of that water. Also, because the
processes described here are comparatively slow, the surface events that
we see as harmless today may have an impact on the cave in the future.
It makes the study of hydrology a critical one in the preservation of a
cave.

**[Bats of Jewel Cave]{.underline}**

Nine species of bats use the resources of Jewel Cave National Monument
throughout the year. Five of those species use the various area
limestone caves and canyon crevices, as well as the ponderosa pine
forest during the warm months of summer for day and night roosts, and
use Jewel Cave as a place to hibernate through the winter. Jewel Cave
serves as one of the largest known winter hibernaculums for a colony of
Townsend\'s big-eared bats (*Corynorhinus townsendii*), a
federally-listed species of concern.

In late spring, pregnant *Myotis* (little brown bats) are found forming
nursery colonies in ponderosa pine snags, rock crevices, and, sometimes,
buildings. Many of these colonies change roosts on a daily basis. A
significant number of *Myotis* hibernate within Jewel Cave during the
colder months, accessing the cave through the original Hell Canyon
entrance.

Jewel Cave is a great hibernaculum for the following reasons: The
original entrance of Jewel Cave is structurally complex and it has a
wide thermal range. It provides a variety of suitable roosting habitats
for a diversity of species. For instance, some species of bats hang from
walls and ceilings at relatively low levels and are tolerant of climatic
fluctuations, while others hibernate in large rooms in relatively warm
and stable environments.

Big brown bats, Hoary bats, and Silver-haired bats reside within the
monument only during the warm months. All of these species relocate in
the winter, either to another location within the Black Hills, or to the
southern United States and Mexico.

Vacationers and the local community, including farmers, benefit from the
insect control provided by the bats of Jewel Cave National Monument.
These insectivorous bats most often eat beetles, flies, and mosquitoes.
A single little brown myotis can catch hundreds of mosquitoes in an
hour.

You might see bats if you are visiting during the warmer months, and in
the evening. The monument bats hunt for insects, their only food source,
during the evening and night hours. They have been seen flying over the
Visitor Center parking lot, and entering and exiting Jewel Cave at the
historic entrance in Hell Canyon. Look for bats emerging from ponderosa
pine snags as well. A visitor along the Scenic or Spelunking Cave Tour
routes will rarely see bats.

# **[Ponderosa Pine Forest]{.underline}**

While ponderosa pines are common to nearly all of the parks represented
in this guide, it is worth mentioning their special significance to
Jewel Cave. Jewel Cave National Monument is home to some of the oldest
ponderosa pine trees in the Black Hills. When the Monument was
established in 1908, legislation provided protection for both the cave
and the forest above. While logging has taken place both east and west
of Hell Canyon, no logging has occurred in the westernmost section of
old growth forest within the Monument.

![](media/image8.png){width="1.7in" height="1.5958333333333334in"}

The ponderosa pine forest has a unique connection with the underground.
Precipitation must make its way through surface soils and vegetation
before continuing into the limestone cave below. The ponderosa is an
extravagant user of readily available moisture. Plentiful ponderosas
taking advantage of rainfall may cause the cave passages below to be
relatively dry. Evenly spaced and mature pines however, will allow more
rain to continue through decomposing vegetation. This moisture will
become more acidic, dissolving limestone more readily. Thus, in the cave
below it is more likely that the growth of speleothems will be more
pronounced and passages will be wet.

**[Wildfire]{.underline}**

Recent wildfires have dramatically affected Jewel Cave's Ponderosa Pine
Forest; the one seen today was from the Jasper Fire. The Jasper Fire
started on August 24, 2000 and burned over 83,000 acres. This included
the entire surface over the know passages of Jewel Cave. Even though
this fire was started by a woman, the mosaic patterns it displays are
typical to western wildfires.

# [Wildlife at Jewel Cave]{.underline}

# Jewel Cave has a variety of wildlife ranging from as small as birds to as large as deer. There are several types of birds that you can see here at Jewel Cave National Monument. The birds range from hawks to turkeys. You can visit the ranger at the information desk to get a copy of our Bird Checklist, which names [all]{.underline} of the birds that you can see here at Jewel Cave. The monument also has mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, weasels, coyotes, and mountain lions.

[Summary of Facts and Figures]{.underline}

**National Monument ESTABLISHMENT:**

Established by presidential proclamation (Pres. Theodore Roosevelt)
February 7, 1908

**ACREAGE:** 1274 acres in the southwestern edge of the Black Hills of
South Dakota

**VISITATION:** 140,000 annually

> 80,000 visitors participate in a cave tour or other interpretive
> program

**CULTURAL RESOURCES:**

> The Ranger Cabin located on the rim of Hell Canyon in Jewel Cave's
> Historic Area is listed on the National Register of Historic
> Structures.
>
> Cave and surface trails in the Historic District were initially
> constructed shortly after the cave's discovery in 1900; all were
> improved by the Civilian Conservation Corp in the 1930s.

**NATURAL RESOURCES:**

> At over 141 miles, Jewel Cave is currently the second longest cave in
> the U.S. and world. It is a multidimensional maze cave, and includes a
> large amount of calcite "nailhead spar", as well as rare speleothems
> including hydromagnesite balloons, logomites, and scintillites.
>
> Surface resources include Hell and Lithograph Canyons, and some of the
> last unlogged Ponderosa Pine forest in the Black Hills.
>
> Jewel Cave is a winter hibernaculum for the Townsend's Big-Eared Bat.