A Glossary of 

Karst Terminology

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1899-K
A Glossary of 

Karst Terminolog)'

Compiled by WATSON H. MONROE

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 1899-K

A contribution to the International 

Hydrological Decade

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1970
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

ROGERS C. B. MORTON, Secretary

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

V. E. McKelvey, Director

Library of Congress catalog-card No. 75-607530

First printing 1970 

Second printing 1972
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATE."

A GLOSSARY OF 

KARST TERMINOLOGY

Compiled by WATSON H. MONROB

ABSTRACT

This glossary includes most terms used in describing karst geomorpho'ogic 

features and processes. The terms are primarily those used in the literature of 

English-speaking countries, but a few of the more common terms in Fronch, 

German, and Spanish are included, with references to the corresponding Enrlish 

terms where they are available. The glossary also includes simple definitions of 

the more common rocks and minerals found in karst terrain, common terms of 

hydrology, and a number of the descriptive terms used by speleologists. The 

glossary does not include definitions of most biospeleological terms, geologic 

structure terms, varieties of carbonate rock that require microscopic techniques 

for identification, or names describing tools and techniques of cave exploration.

INTRODUCTION

This glossary of karst terminology has been compiled mainly from 

published definitions and suggestions made by the following investigators in karst geomorphology: Keuben Frank and Joseph N. Jennings, Australia; Marjorie M. Sweeting, England; Paul Fenelon, 

France; Paul W. Williams, Ireland; David Wozab, Jamaica, TTest 

Indies; Victor R. Baker, Eugene Borax, Eeginald P. Briggs, William 

E. Davies, John J. Fisher, L. A. Heindl, Harry LeGrand, C. L. 

McGuinness, George W. Moore, James P. Quinlan, Zane Spiegel, and 

V. T. Stringfield, United States.

The terms are primarily those used in the literature of EngMshspeaking countries, but a few of the more common terms in French, 

German, Spanish, and Slavic languages are included, with references 

to the corresponding English terms. The existing glossaries of geology, 

geography, and speleology listed in the references have been paraphrased or quoted freely. Authorship has not been cited because the 

origin of most terms has not been determined.

Although the glossary was originally intended to include only 

definitions of karst geomorphologic features, it was soon found desirable to include definitions of the more common rocks and minerals 

found in karst terrain, common terms of hydrology, and a number of 

the descriptive terms used by speleologists; most biospeleological

Kl
K2 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

terms have been omitted. Also omitted are definitions of geologic 

structure terms, which are defined in most dictionaries; varieties of 

carbonate rocks that require microscopic techniques for identification; 

and names describing tools and techniques of cave exploration,

GLOSSARY

abime. (French.) 1. Abyss. 2. Wide, deep 

shaft, in limestone, the walls of which 

are vertical or overhanging.

abris sous roche. (French.) See rock 

shelter.

active cave. 1. Cave containing a running 

stream. 2. Cave in which speleothems 

are growing. (Less common and less 

desirable usage.) Compare live cave.

aeolianite. See eolian calcarenite.

aeration, zone of. See zone of aeration.

aggressive water. Water having the ability to dissolve rocks. In the context of 

limestone and dolomite, this term refers 

especially to water containing dissolved 

carbon dioxide (carbonic acid) or, 

rarely, other acids.

aguada. (Spanish for watering place.) In 

Yucatan, shallow depression generally 

covering several hectares used for 

water supply.

air pocket. An enclosed air space between 

the water surface and the roof of a 

cave.

aisle. An elongated high narrow traversable passage in a cave. See also crawl, 

crawl way; corridor; passage.

alternative. Adjective used to designate 

an intake or resurgence operating only 

during rainy seasons; in some areas 

reversible; equivalent to intermittent 

Used also as a noun.

alveolization. (From the Latin word 

"alveolatus," meaning hollowed out.) 

Pitting of a rock surface produced by 

wind loaded with sand, by water 

charged with carbonic acid, or by plant 

roots.

anastomosis. A network of tubular passages or holes in a cave or in a solutionsculptured rock. A complex of many 

irregular and repeatedly connected passages. Synonym, labryrinth.

anentolite. A helictite in vhich the eccentricity is ascribed to the action of air 

currents.

anthodite. A cave formation composed 

of feathery or radiating- masses of long 

needlelike crystals of gj-psum or aragonite, which radiate ortward from a 

common base. See also cave flower.

apron. A smooth bulging mass of flowstone covering sloping projections from 

walls of caves or limestone cliffs.

aquifer. A ground-water reservoir. Pervious rock that is completely saturated 

and will yield water to a well or 

spring.

aragonite. A mineral composed of calcium 

carbonate, CaCOa, like calcite but differing in crystal form.

arete and pinnacle karat. A landscape of 

naked reticulated saw-topped ridges 

having almost vertical slopes and a 

relief of as much as 120 meters. The 

ridges rise above forest-covered corridors and depressions. Found in New 

Guinea at elevations o* 2,000 meters 

and more.

aven. 1. (French.) A vertical or highly 

inclined shaft in limestone, extending 

upward from a cave passage, generally 

to the surface; smaller than an abtme. 

Commonly related to enlarged vertical 

joints. Compare cenote; natural well; 

pothole. 2. (British.) A vertical extension from a shaft in a passage or chamber roof that tapers upward rather like 

a very elongate cone. Compare dome 

pit.

B

backflooding. Temporarily rising water 

level in a cave caused I* downstream 

passage being too small to pass an abnormally high discharge. The excavation and reexcavation of some caves is 

ascribed to the enlargement of a pas-
A GLOSSARY OP KARST TERMINOLOGY K3

sage at or near the water table by 

gravity flow alternating with periods 

of calcite precipitation.

bacon. Thin, elongated, translucent flowstone having parallel colored bands on 

or projecting from roofs and walls of 

some caves. See also blanket; curtain; 

drapery.

balcony. Any projection on the wall of a 

cave large enough to support one or 

more persons.

bare karst. See naked karst.

base level, karst. See karst base level.

beachrock. A friable to indurated rock 

consisting of sand grains of various 

minerals cemented by calcium carbonate; occurs in thin beds dipping seaward at less than 15°. Also known as 

beach standstone.

bed. A layer in sedimentary rocks; a 

stratum.

bedding plane. A plane that separates 

two strata of differing characteristics.

bedding-plane cave. A passage formed 

along a bedding plane, especially when 

there is a difference in susceptibility to 

corrosion in the two beds.

bicarbonate. A salt containing the radical HCOs'1, such as Ca(HCOs) 2.

biospeleology. The study of subterranean 

living organisms, particularly in caves 

in limestone regions.

blade. In a cave, a thin sharp projection 

jutting out from roof, wall, or floor, of 

which it is an integral part; generally 

the remains of a partition or bridge.

blanket. A thick layer of dripstone, not 

translucent, see also bacon; curtain; 

drapery.

blind valley. A valley that ends suddenly 

at the point where its stream disappears underground; some blind valleys 

have no present-day streams. See also 

half-blind valley; marginal polje.

blowhole. 1. A hole on land near the 

shore through which air and water are 

forced by incoming waves. 2. (Australia. ) A small hole in the surface of the 

Nullarbor Plain through which air 

blows in and out with observable force, 

sometimes audibly.

blowing cave. A cave out of which or 

into which a current of air f aws intermittently.

blowing welL A well into T7hich and 

from which air blows with noticeable 

force owing to changes in barometric 

pressure or tidal action on the underlying aquifer.

blue hole. 1. (Jamaica.) A m^jor emergence where water rises from below 

without great turbulence. See also 

boiling spring. 2. (Bahamas.) A 

drowned solution sinkhole.

bogaz. (Slavic.) A long narrow chasm 

enlarged by solution of the limestone. 

See also corridor; struga; rinjon.

boiling spring. (Jamaica.) A Irrge turbulent spring. See also blue hole.

bone-breccia. Cave breccia including 

much bone.

botryoid. A grapelike deposit of calcium 

carbonate generally found on walls of 

caves. Synonyms, clusterite; grape 

formation.

bourne. (British.) Intermittent stream 

in a normally dry valley in chalk 

country.

boxwork. Network of thin blades of calcite or gypsum etched out ii relief on 

the limestone walls and ceiling of a 

cave.

branchwork. A dendritic system of subterranean watercourses having many 

incoming branches and no risible outgoing ones.

breakdown. See cave breakdown.

bridge. In a cave, a residual rock span 

across a passage. See also natural 

bridge

buried karst. Karst topography buried 

by younger sediments. See also covered karst; paleokarst.

C

calanque. (French.) 1. Cove or small bay. 

2. A valley excavated in limestone or 

formed by collapse of the roof of a cave 

and subsequently submerged by a rise 

in sea level.

calc-. Prefix meaning limy; containing 

calcium carbonate.
K4 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

calcarenite. Limestone or dolomite composed of coral or shell sand or of grains 

derived from the disintegration and 

erosion of older limestones. Size of 

particles ranges from 1/16 to 2 millimeters.

calcareous. Containing calcium carbonate.

calcareous tufa. See sinter.

calcification. Replacement of the original 

hard parts of an animal or plant by 

calcium carbonate.

calcilutite. Clastic limestone or dolomite 

in which the grains have an average 

diameter of less than 1/16 millimeter; 

calcareous mudstone.

calcirudite. A fragmental limestone in 

which the particles are generally larger 

than 2 millimeters.

calcite. A mineral composed of calcium 

carbonate, CaCOs, like aragonite but 

differing in crystal form; the principal 

constituent of limestone.

calcite bubble. A hollow sphere formed 

by the deposition of calcite around a 

gas bubble; the interior is smooth, and 

the exterior consists of small jagged 

crystals.

calcite flottante. (French.) See floe calcite.

calcrete. (South Africa.) See caliche.

caliche. 1. (Chile and Peru.) A natural 

deposit of nitrates and other salts 

precipitated at the soil surface. 2. 

(Mexico and Southwestern United 

States.) Indurated calcium carbonate 

and other salts found in the soil at the 

surface in arid and semiarid regions, 

generally formed by evaporation of 

lime-bearing waters drawn to the surface by capillary action. 3. In some 

areas, refers to hardpan resulting from 

concentration of carbonate in the soil 

by downward leaching and repreciptation. See also kankar, kunkar.

canalc. (Italian.) Long drowned valley 

on the Dalmatian coast. Some canali 

may be drowned poljes.

canopy. A compound cave formation consisting of flowstone hanging from a

sloping wall projection and forming a 

fringe of shawls or stalactites on the 

outer edge.

canyon. 1. A steep-walletf chasm, gorge, 

or ravine cut by running: water. 2. A 

chasm that has been formed by a cave 

stream. 3. A valley forned by collapse 

of the roof of a long fairly straight 

cave; a karst valley.

capillary stalagmite. Hollow stalagmite 

formed by saturated karst water 

pushed up through capillaries and small 

cracks in a sinter crus"; covering permeable fluvial deposits on the floor of 

a cave; first reported from Cuba, where 

such stalagmites are composed of 

aragonite.

carbonate. 1. A salt or es*er of carbonic 

acid; a compound containing the radical COs"2, such as calcrum carbonate, 

CaCOs. 2. A rock consisting mainly of 

carbonate minerals, suc*> as limestone 

or dolomite.

causse. (French.) A limestone plateau in 

the southeastern part of the central 

massif of France chrracterized by 

closed depressions, caves, and avens; 

a number of such plrteaus in and 

around the basin of t^e river Tarn 

constitute Les Grandes Gausses. This 

region was considered by CvijiC to exemplify karst development intermediate 

between holokarst and merokarst.

cave. 1. A natural underground room or 

series of rooms and passages large 

enough to be entered b7 a man; generally formed by solutio^ of limestone. 

2. A similar artificial opening.

cave blister. A small pimpMike cave formation, roughly oval in shape, generally loose, and having a core of mud.

cave breakdown. 1. Enlargement of parts 

of a cave system by fall of rock masses 

from walls and ceiling. 2. Heaps of rock 

that have collapsed froir the walls and 

ceiling of a cave, generally called cave 

breccia.

cave breccia. Angular fragments of rock 

forming a fill in a cave, either cemented 

together by dripstone or in a matrix of 

cave earth. Sec also solution breccia.
A GLOSSARY OF KAKST TERMINOLOGY K5

cave coral. A rough, knobby growth of calcite resembling coral in shape, generally small; found on floor, walls, or 

ceiling of a cave. Synonym, coral formation. See also knobstone.

cave earth, cave fill. Insoluble deposits of 

clay, silt, sand, or gravel flooring or filling a cave pa.ssage. In a more restricted 

sense, cave earth includes only the finer 

fractions: clay, silt, and fine sand 

deposits.

cave flower. An elongate curved deposit 

of gypsum or epsomite on a cave wall 

in which growth occurs at the attached 

end. Synonyms, gypsum flower; oulopholite.

cave formation. Secondary mineral deposit formed by the accumulation, dripping, or flowing of water in a cave. See 

also speleothem.

cave group. A number of caves or cave 

systems, not interconnected but geographically associated in some relief 

feature or particular geological outcrop. See also cave series.

cave guano. Accumulations of dung in 

caves, generally from bats; in some 

places partially mineralized.

cave ice. Ice formed in a cave by natural 

freezing of water. Loosely but incorrectly applied to calcium carbonate 

dripstone and flowstone.

cave-in. The collapse of the ceiling or side 

walls of a cave or of the land surface 

into a subterranean passage as a result 

of undermining or of pressure from 

above.

cave marble. Banded deposit of calcite or 

aragonite capable of taking a high 

polish. See also flowstone; onyx 

marble.

cave onyx. See onyx marble.

cave pearl. Small concretion of calcite or 

aragonite formed by concentric precipitation around a nucleus. Synonyms, 

pisolite, pisolith.

cave series. A group of caves of similar 

morphology in a particular district. 

See also cave group.

cave spring. A spring rising in a cave.

cave system. 1. An underground network 

of passages, chambers, or other cavities.

2. The caves in a given area related to 

each other hydrologically, whether 

continuous or discontinuous from a single opening. See also cave grrnp, cave 

series.

caver. One who explores caves as a sport. 

Synonyms, potholer; spelunker.

cavern. A cave, often used poetically or to 

connote larger-than-average size.

cavernous. Containing numerous1 cavities 

or caverns.

caving. The sport of exploring caves. 

Synonyms, potholing; spelurking. 2. 

A method of mining in whicl the ore 

is allowed to cave or fall.

ceiling block. Roughly cubical jointbounded large block, which h^s fallen 

from the ceiling of a cave. See also cave 

breakdown; ceiling slab.

ceiling cavity. Solutional concav'ty in the 

ceiling of a cave. The orientat'on is determined by joints or a bedding plane.

ceiling channel. Sinuous channel developed in the ceiling of a cave, presumably during the phreatic phase of cave 

development.

ceiling meander. A winding upside-down 

channel in a cave ceiling.

ceiling pocket. See pocket.

ceiling slab, roof slab. A thin bnt extensive piece of rock that has fallen from 

the ceiling of a cave in roughly horizontal limestone. See also cave breakdown ; ceiling block.

ceiling tube. A half tube remaining in the 

ceiling of a cave.

cenote. (Spanish, after Mayan tzouet or 

dzonot.) Steep-walled natural well that 

extends below the water tabl?; generally caused by collapse of a cave roof. 

Term used only for features in Yucatan. 

See also natural well.

chalk. Soft poorly indurated limestone, 

generally light in color; commonly composed of the tests of floating microorganisms in a matrix of veT finely 

crystalline calcite.

chamber. 1. (America.) The largest order 

of cavity in a cave or cave system; it 

has considerable length and breadth 

but not necessarily great lieight. 2. 

(England.) A room in a cave.
K6 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

chasm. 1. A deep, fairly narrow breach in

the earth's surface; an abyss; a gorge;

a deep canyon. 2. A deep, wide,

elongated gap in the floor of a cave.

chert. Light-cream or gray to black rock

composed of silica, found occurring as

nodules or layers in limestone, or as a

replacement of limestone.

chimney. A narrow vertical shaft in the

roof of a cave, generally smaller than

an aven; a dome pit.

chockstone. A rock wedged between the

walls of a cave passage. 

choke. Rock debris or cave fill completely

blocking a passage. 

chute. An inclined channel or trough in a

cave, 

clay fill. Dry or wet clay that fills a cave

passage.

clay filling. According to Bretz (1942), 

time interval between end of phreatic 

solution of a cave and beginning of 

deposition of flowstone. 

clint. (England.) ialabs of limestone, parallel to the bedding, forming a pavement. Widened joints, or grikes, isolate individual clints. Synonym, 

Flachkarren.

closed depression. A general term for any 

enclosed topographic basin having no 

external drainage, regardless of origin 

or size.

clusterite. See botryoid. 

cockpit. (Jamaica.) 1. Any closed depression having steep sides. 2. A star-shaped 

depression having a conical or slightly 

concave floor. The surrounding hill 

slopes are steep and convex. Cockpits 

are the common type of closed depressions in a Kegelkarst. 

cockpit karst. Tropical karst topography 

containing many closed depressions 

surrounded by conical hills. Divided by 

French and German geographers into 

several types depending on shape of 

hills. See also cone karst; Halbkugelkarst; Kegelkarst; Spitzkegelkarst; 

tower karst.

collapse breccia. A mass of rock composed 

of angular to rounded fragments of

limestone or dolomite that has formed 

as the result of the collapse of the roof 

of a cave, of an underlying cave, or of 

an overhanging ledge. See also solution 

breccia.

collapse sink. A closed depression formed 

by the collapse of tie roof of a cave. 

See also doline.

column. A flowstone formation, generally 

.cylindrical, formed l^ the union of a 

stalactite and stair ^rnite. See also 

pillar.

conduit. A subterranean stream course 

filled completely with water and always 

under hydrostatic pressure. See also 

siphon.

cone karst. A type of karst topography, 

common in the tropicr. characterized by 

star-shaped depressions at the feet of 

many steep-sided cor ^-shaped hills. A 

variety of Kegelkarst. See also cockpit 

karst.

conical wall niche. See meander niche, 

constructive waterfall. A large rimstone

dam on a surface stream. 

conuiite. A hollow, cone-shaped speleothem formed when a conical depression 

is drilled in cave muc1 by falling water. 

Subsequent erosion may remove the 

mud, isolating the calcite lining of the 

depression.

corrasion. Mechanical erosion performed 

by such moving agents as water, ice, 

and wind, espe' ' Jly when armed with 

rock fragments. See also corrosion, 

corridor. 1. Relatively narrow passageway permitting travel between two 

larger areas. 2. A fairljy level and 

straight passage that links two or more 

rooms or chambers in a cave. 3. Intersecting linear depressions on the surface of the land, related to joints or 

dikes. See also bogaz; struga; zanjon. 

corrosion. Erosion by solution or chemical action. See also corrasion. 

coupole. (French.) C "oola or hemispheric hill.

cove. (Southern Appalachians.) Narrow 

steep-sided karst val>y flanking limestone plateaus.
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K7

covered karst. A terrane of karst features, usually subdued, resulting from 

the development of solution features 

in limestone covered by soil; contrasted 

with naked karst, which is soil free. 

See also buried karst. 

crawl, crawlway. A cave passage that 

must be negotiated on hands and knees. 

crescentic wall niche. See meander niche, 

crevice karst. An intricate irregular crevice system that has formed by solution 

widening of closely spaced joints. Crevices may be as much as 6 meters across 

and 20 meters deep. Especially well 

developed near rivers in lowland New 

Guinea.

crust stone. A fragile layer of flowstone

covering portions of walls of caves;

looks like a flaky crust. Found in some

Kentucky caves.

cryokarst. European equivalent of thermokarst.

crystal cave. A cave in which much of 

the surface of the roof, walls, and floor 

is covered with well-formed mineral 

crystals.

crystal pool. In caves a pool, generally 

having little or no overflow, containing 

crystals. 

cueva. (Spanish.) Cave, especially one

that is horizontal or nearly so. 

cul-de-sac, dead end. A subterranean passage having only one entry. 

cupola. A hemispheric hill of limestone. 

(French.) Cupole. (German.) Halbkugel.

current marking. Shallow asymmetrical 

hollows, caused by turbulent waterfiow, 

that are distributed in rather regular 

fashion over limestone surfaces. See 

also scallop.

curtain. A wavy or folded sheet of flowstone hanging from the roof or projecting from the wall of a cave; often 

translucent and resonant. See also 

bacon; blanket; drapery, 

cutter. 1. (Tennessee.) Solution crevice 

in limestone underlying residual phosphate deposits. 2. A Karren-like groove 

formed beneath the soil, more commonly referred to as subsoil Karren. 

See also Karren.

D

daylight hole. A hole in the roof of a 

cave, reaching the surface.

dead cave. A dry cave in which all solution and precipitation has ceesed.

dead end. See cul-de-sac.

decalcification. Removal of calcium carbonate from a rock, leaving a residuum 

of noncalcareous material.

Deckenkarren. (German.) Solutional 

pendant features in cave ceilir^s.

decoration. Cave features due to secondary precipitation of calcite, aragonite, 

gypsum, and other rarer minerals.

diffuse circulation. Circulation of ground 

water in karst aquifers under conditions in which all, or almost all, openings in the karstified rock intercommunicate and are full of water in the 

zone of saturation.

dissolution. See solution.

dog-tooth crystal, dog-tooth spar. A 

variety of calcite in the form of sharppointed crystals.

doline. A basin- or funnel-shaped hollow 

in limestone, ranging in diameter from 

a few meters to a kilometer and in 

depth from a few to several hundred 

meters. Some dolines are gentle grassy 

hollows; others are rocky cliff-bounded 

basins. A distinction may be made between those formed mainly by direct 

solution of the limestone surface zone, 

solution dolines, and those formed by 

collapse over a cave, collapse dolines, 

but it is generally not possible to establish the origin of individual eramples. 

Closed depressions receiving >a stream 

are known as swallow holes or stream 

sinks. In America most dolinesr are referred to as sinks or sinkholes

doline lake. A small karst lake occupying a doline.

dolomite. 1. A mineral composed of 

calcium magnesium carbonate, 

CaMg(CO»)*. 2. Rock chiefly composed 

of the mineral dolomite. Also called 

dolostone.

dolomitization. The process whereby 

limestone becomes dolomite by the substitution of magnesium carbonate for 

part of the original calcium carbonate.

489-369 O - 72 - 2
K8 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

dome pit. "Mammoth Cave possesses several extraordinary vertical cavities of 

which the arched tops are called domes 

and the deep bottoms are called pfts. 

The combined names, dome pits, is here 

used for them." (Davis, 1930, p. 600.)

drapery. A thin sheet of dripstone, equivalent to curtain. See also bacon; 

blanket.

driphole. 1. Hole in rock or clay produced by fast-dripping water. 2. Hollow space surrounded by precipitated 

material, such as the bottom of a 

stalactite.

dripstone. Calcium carbonate deposited 

from water dripping from the ceiling 

or wall of a cave or from the overhanging edge of a rock shelter; commonly 

refers to the rock in stalactites, stalagmites, and other similar speleothems; 

in some places composed of aragonite 

or gypsum. See also flowstone.

dry cave. A cave without a running 

stream. See also dead cave.

dry valley. A valley that lacks a surface 

water channel; common in the chalk of 

southern England.

duck-under. 1. A place where water 

reaches the cave roof for a short distance and can be passed by quick submergence without swimming. 2. In cave 

diving, a longer stretch of passage 

where the water is so close to the roof 

that crawling or swimming beneath the 

water surface is needed to pass.

dune limestone. (Australia.) see eolian 

calcarenite.

Durchgangshohle. (German.) See 

through cave.

E

ebb and flow spring, ebbing and flowing 

well. A spring or flowing well exhibiting periodic variation in volume of 

flow; the periodicity, which is often 

irregular, is attributed to siphonic 

action.

eccentric. Adjective or noun implying abnormal shape in speleothems, such as 

helictites.

effluent cave. See outflow cave.

emergence. Point at which an underground stream comes to the surface. 

See also exsurgence; resurgence; rise.

eolian calcarenite. A terrestrial limestone formed by the cementation by carbonates of calcareous coastal dune 

sand. Often shortened to eolianite. Synonym, dune-limestone. Compare beachrock.

epiphreas, epiphreatic zone. The zone in 

a cave system, immediately above the 

phreatic zone, affected morphologically 

and hydrologically br floods too large 

for the cave to absort at once.

estavelle. (French.) An intermittent resurgence or exsurgeroe, active only in 

wet seasons. May ac*: alternatively as 

a swallow hole and as a rising according to ground-water conditions.

etched pothole. See solution pan.

evorsion. Mechanical erosion by whirling water that may carry sand and 

gravel; pothole erosion.

exhumed karst. Karst features reexposed 

by erosion from beneath former covering strata.

exsurgence. Point at which an underground stream reaches the surface if 

stream has no knovn surface headwaters. See also emergence; resurgence.

F

facet. See scallop.

fault cave. A cave developed along a fault 

or fault zone.

fissure cave. A narrow vertical cave or 

cave passage along a fissure. Fissures 

widen out to become wells or shaft 

caves.

flattener. A cave passage, which though 

wide, is so low that movement is only 

possible in a prone position. See also 

crawl.

floe calcite. Very thin film of pure calcium carbonate floating on the surface 

of a subterranean pool of very calm 

water.

floor pocket. See pocket.
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K9

flowstone. Deposits of calcium carbonate, 

gypsum, and other mineral matter 

which have accumulated on the walls 

or floors of caves at places where water 

trickles or flows over the rock. See also 

dripstone.

fluorescein. A reddish-yellow crystalline 

compound that imparts a brilliant 

green fluorescent color to water in very 

dilute solutions; used to label underground water for identification of an 

emergence.

flute. See scallop.

fluviokarst. A predominantly karst landscape in which there is much evidence 

of past or present fluvial activity.

foiba. (Italian.) 1. A deep wide vertical 

cavity or the swallow point of a river at 

the beginning of its underground course. 

2. A natural vertical shaft in soluble 

rock, tending toward cylindrical shape; 

it may or may not reach the surface. A 

dome pit.

formation. 1. The fundamental unit in 

rock-stratigraphio classification, consisting of a distinctive mappable body 

of rock. 2. See cave formation; speleothem.

fossil karst. See paleokarst.

free-surface stream. In a cave, a stream 

that does not completely fill its passage.

fresco. A half-section of a stalactite on 

the wall of a cave.

fungling. (Chinese.) Isolated limestone 

hill in alluvial plain, probably similar 

to mogote.

G

gallery. A rather large, nearly horizontal

passage in a cave. 

geode. Hollow globular bodies varying in

size from a few centimeters to several

decimeters, coated on the interior with

crystals. 

geological organ. A group of solution

pipes best seen in the walls of quarries. 

glacier cave. Cave in ice formed within

or at the base of a glacier. 

glaciokarst. A glaciated limestone region

possessing both glacial and karst

characteristics.

glade. 1. (Jamaica.) An elongate depression, having steep sides, in v^hich a 

generally flat floor is divided into small 

basins separated by low divides. 2. 

(Tennessee.) Limestone pavement having extensive growth of cedar trees.

globularite. Small crystals of calcite 

tipped with spheres composed of radiating fibers.

gour. See rimstone barrage, r'nistone 

barrier, rimstone dam.

grape formation. See botryoid.

grike, gryke. (England.) A vertical or 

subvertical fissure in a limestone pavement developed by solution along 

a joint. Synonym. (German.) 

Kluftkarren.

grotto. 1. A small cave, natural or artificial. 2. A room, in a cave system, of 

moderate dimensions but richly 

decorated.

ground air. See soil air.

ground water. 1. The part of the subsurface water that is in the zone of 

saturation. See also phreas, phreatic 

water. 2. Used loosely by some to refer 

to any water beneath the surface.

gryke. See grike.

guano. See cave guano.

gulf. Steep-walled closed depression having a flat alluviated bottom; in some 

gulfs a stream flows across the bottom.

gushing spring. See vauclusian spring.

gypsum. A mineral composed of hydrous 

calcium sulfate, CaSO^H-O.

?ypsum flower. See cave flower.

H

Halbhbhle. (German.) See rock shelter.

Halbkugelkarst. (German.) Tropical 

karst topography containing domeshaped residual hills surrounding depressions, a kind of Kegelkarst. Also 

called Kugelkarst

half-blind valley. Blind valley in which 

the stream overflows in floodtirae when 

the swallow hole can not accept all the 

water.

half tube. Trace of a tube remaining in 

the roof or wall of a cave. See also tube.
K10 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

hall. In a cave, a lofty chamber which is 

much longer than it is wide. See also 

gallery.

hanging blade. A blade projecting down 

from the ceiling. See also blade.

hardness. Property of water that prevents 

lathering because of the presence of 

cations, mainly calcium and magnesium, which form insoluble soaps.

haystack hill. (Puerto Rico.) In the 

tropics, rounded conical hill of limestone developed as a result of solution. 

Term being replaced by mogote.

helictite. A curved or angular twiglike 

lateral projection of calcium carbonate 

having a tiny central canal, found in 

caves. Synonym, eccentric stalactite.

heligmite. An eccentric growing upward 

from a cave floor or from a shelf in 

a cave. A curved or angular thin stalagmite.

holokarst. Cvijitf's term for a karst area 

like that of the Dinaric Karst of 

Slovenia. Such areas have bare surfaces on thick deposits of limestone 

that extend below sea level, welldeveloped Karren, dolines, uvalas, 

poljes, deep ponors, and extensive cave 

systems; they have little or no surface 

drainage. Contrast merokarst.

hoya, hoyo. (Spanish.) A very large 

closed depression. Used in Puerto Rico 

for doline, in Cuba for polje.

hum. Karst inselberg. Residual hill of 

limestone on a fairly level floor, such 

as the isolated hills of limestone in 

poljes. In some tropical areas, used 

loosely as synonym for mogote.

hydraulic conductivity. The ability of a 

rock unit to conduct water under 

specified conditions.

ice cave. 1. A cave, generally in lava or 

limestone, in which the average temperature is below 0°C., and which 

ordinarily contains perennial ice. Ice 

may have the form of stalactites, stalagmites, or flowstone. 2. See glacier 

cave.

inflow cave, influent cave. Cave into 

which a stream flews or formerly 

entered.

intake area, recharge area. The surface 

area in which water is absorbed into 

an aquifer eventually to reach the zone 

of saturation.

inverted siphon. See wa*.er trap.

jama. 1. (Slavic.) Verbal or steeply inclined shaft in limestone, known as 

abime or aven in France and as pothole 

in England. 2. Any crve.

joint-plane cave. A cavity high in relation 

to width developed along steeply dipping joint planes.

Kamenitza. (German, possibly of Slavic 

origin; plural, Kamer'ce.) See solution 

pan.

kankar, kunkar. (Australia.) See caliche.

Karren (German) Channels or furrows, 

caused by solution on massive 

bare limestone surfaces; they vary 

in depth from, a few millimeters 

to more than a meter and are 

separated by ridges. In modern usage, 

the terms are general, describing the 

total complex of superficial solution 

forms found on compact pure limestone. 

Classified by B6gli (1960) into several 

kinds, of which the most common are: 

Rillenkarren, shallow channels separated by sharp ridge? 2-3 centimeters 

apart; Rinnenkarren, flat-bottomed 

grooves several centimeters apart; 

Kluftkarren, joints enlarged by solution; Spitzkarren, large deep grooves 

extending down frorr steep spires or 

pinnacles; MSanderkarren, small winding or meandering channels; Rundkarren, Karren having rounded channels and intervening rounded ridges, 

probably reexhumed after formation 

under soil or peat; FTachkarren, equivalent to English clint; Bodenkarren, 

Karren formed beneath the soil. Synonym, lapie's.
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY Kll

Karrenfeld. (German.) An area of limestone dominated by Karren.

karst. (Internationally used term, originally the German form of the Slavic 

word kras or krs", meaning a bleak 

waterless place; it is the German name 

for a district east of Trieste having 

such terrain.) A terrain, generally 

underlain by limestone, in which the 

topography is chiefly formed by the dissolving of rock, and which is commonly 

characterized by Karren, closed depressions, subterranean drainage, and 

caves. See also buried karst; cone 

karst; covered karst; exhumed karst; 

Halbkugelkarst; holokarst; Kegelkarst; merokarst; microkarst; naked 

karst; paleokarst; pseudokarst; Spitzkegelkarst; subjacent karst; syngenetic karst; thermokarst; tower karst.

karst barre. (French.) A karst of limited 

area completely surrounded by rocks of 

low permeability.

karst base level. Level below which 

karstiflcation does not take place.

karst breccia. See also collapse breccia; 

solution breccia.

karst bridge. A natural bridge or arch in 

limestone.

karst fens. Marshes developed in sinkhole 

terrain; swampy solution fens.

karst fenster. See karst window.

karst hydrology. The drainage phenomena of karstified limestones, dolomites, 

and other slowly soluble rocks.

karst lake. A large area of standing water 

in extensive closed depression in 

limestone.

karst margin plain. A plain generally on 

limestone between higher country of 

limestone on one side and of less pervious rocks on the other, but having a 

cover of impervious detritus, which 

allows surface drainage. Synonym, 

Karstrandebene.

karst plain. A plain on which closed depressions, subterranean drainage, and 

other karst features may be developed. 

Also called karst plateau.

karst pond. Closed depression in a karst 

area containing standing water.

karst river. A river that originates from 

a karst spring.

karst spring. A spring emerging from 

karstified limestone. See also emergence; exsurgence; resurgent; rise.

karst topography. Topography dominated 

by features of solutional origin.

karst valley. 1. Elongate solution valley. 

2. Valley produced by collapse of a 

cavern roof.

karst window. 1. Depression revealing a 

part of a subterranean river flowing 

across its floor, or an unroofed part of 

a cave. 2. A small natural l~idge or 

arch which can be seen through.

karstic. Occasionally used as the adjective form of karst.

karstification. Action by water, mainly 

chemical but also mechanical, that produces features of a karst toroeraphy, 

including such surface features as 

dolines, Karren, and mogotes and such 

subsurface features as caves and 

shafts.

karstland. A region characterized by 

karst topography.

Karstrandebene. (German.) S*e karst 

margin plain.

katavothron. (Greek.) A closed depression or swallow hole.

Kegelkarst. (German.) A general term 

used to describe several types of tropical humid karst characterized by 

numerous, closely spaced con«-, hemispherical-, or tower-shaped hills having 

intervening closed depressions and narrow steep-walled karst valleys or passageways. See also cockpit ka^st; cone 

karst; Halbkugelkarst; tower karst.

keyhole. A small passage or opening in a 

cave; in cross section, rounded at the 

top, constricted in the middle, and rectangular or flared out below.

knobstone. Speleothem, larger, more pronounced, and more widely separated 

than cave coral.

kras, krs. A Slavic word meaning bleak, 

waterless place, from which the term 

karst is derived. See also karst.

Kugelkarst. See Halbkugelkarst.
K12 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

labyrinth. See network.

lake. As used in speleology, a body of 

standing water too deep to walk across.

lapies. (French; sometimes spelled 

lapiaz.) See Karren.

lava cave. A cave in a lava flow, generally 

formed by gas blistering the surface 

or by lava flowing out from beneath a 

solidified crust, forming a tube or tunnel. See also pseudo karst.

level. 1. Within a cave, a group of passages developed in the same horizontal 

plane. 2. The altitudinal relation of a 

cave floor to an outside surface.

light hole. (Jamaica.) Fossil or abandoned swallow hole.

lime. Calcium oxide, CaO; used loosely 

and incorrectly in referring to limestone.

lime sink. See sinkhole.

limestone. A sedimentary rock consisting 

chiefly of calcium carbonate, CaCOs.

limestone pavement. A bare plane surface 

of limestone, parallel to the bedding, 

commonly divided into blocks (clints, 

Flaehkarren) by solutionally widened 

joints (grikes, Kluf tkarren), and pitted 

by solution pans.

limestone sink. See sinkhole.

live cave. Cave in which there is river 

action or active deposition of speleothems. Compare active cave.

localized circulation. Circulation in karst 

aquifers in which the water moves in 

certain preferred zones and does not 

occupy all or most of the openings 

below this level.

lost river. In a karst region, a surface 

stream that enters an underground 

course.

lycopodium spores. Spores of lycopoaium 

claratum, which can be used in natural 

or dyed color as a label in studying 

ground-water movement in karst areas.

M

marble. 1. Limestone recrystallized and 

hardened by heat and pressure. 2. 

Commercially, any limestone that will 

take a high polish.

marginal polje. Flat limestone plain 

which is surrounded by higher country 

but is bordered on one side by impervious rock. Compare blind valley.

marl. Unconsolidated sedimentary rock 

consisting largely of calcium carbonate 

and clay; usage varies from calcareous 

clay to earthy limestone, and in some 

parts of the United States, the term 

has been used for any unconsolidated 

sedimentary rock containing fossil 

shells.

maze cave. See network.

meander. In a cave, an arcuate curve in 

a channel formed by Irteral shifting of 

a cave stream. See ceiling meander; 

meander niche.

meander niche. A coni'»al or crescentshaped opening in the wall of a cave, 

formed by the downward and lateral 

erosion of a stream o^ the floor of a 

passage.

merokarst. Defined by C-ijic" to indicate 

imperfect karst topogrr phy as found on 

thin, impure, or chalky limestone where 

surface drainage and dry valleys are 

present in addition to s ome karstic features. Contrast perfectly formed holokarst.

Mexican onyx. See onyy marble.

microkarst. Karst topography in which 

all surficial features ar? small; an area 

dominated by minor krrst features.

minor karst features. See Karren; rill; 

solution pan.

Mischungskorrosion. (Grerman.) Dissolving of limestone by water derived from 

the mixing of two saturated waters that 

differ in carbon dioxide partial pressure. Such a mixture is undersaturated 

because a nonlinear re^tion exists between calcite solubility and the partial 

pressure of carbon cUoxide. (Bogli, 

1964)

mogote. A steep-sided hill of limestone, 

generally surrounded by nearly flat alluviated plains; karst inselberg. Originally used in Cuba in referring to 

residual hills of folded limestone in the 

Sierra de los Organos but now used 

internationally for kar^t residual hills 

in the Tropics.
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K13

moonmilk. A white plastic calcareous cave 

deposit composed of calcite, huntite, or 

magnesite. From Swiss dialect moonmilch, elf's milk. Corrupt spelling 

mondmilch is common.

mud stalagmite. Stalagmite composed 

principally of clay or sandy clay and 

commonly less than 30 percent calcium 

carbonate.

N

naked karst, bare karst. Karst topography having much exposed bedrock.

natural arch. A rock arch or very short 

natural tunnel; contrasted with natural bridge, which spans a ravine or 

valley.

natural bridge. A rock bridge spanning a 

ravine and not yet eroded away.

natural tunnel. A nearly horizontal cave 

open at both ends, generally fairly 

straight in direction and fairly uniform in cross section.

natural well. (Jamaica.) A vertical shaft 

in limestone, open to the surface and 

having water at the bottom; similar to 

a cenote.

nested sinkholes. (American.) See uvala.

network. A complex pattern of repeatedly 

connected passages in a cave system. 

Synonym, labyrinth.

nip. An undercutting notch in rock, particularly limestone, along a seacoast 

between high and low tide levels, produced by erosion or solution.

O

ojo, ojo de agua. (Spanish.) An artesian 

spring in limestone regions, especially 

one forming a small pond; a vauclusian 

spring.

onyx marble. Translucent layers of calcium carbonate from cave deposits, 

often called Mexican onyx or cave 

onyx; used as an ornamental stone.

Opferkessel. See solution pan.

oulopholite. See cave flower.

outflow cave. Cave from which stream 

flows out or formerly did so. Synonym, 

effluent cave.

ouvala. (French.) See uvala.

paleokarst. A karstified rock or area that 

has been buried by later sediments; in 

some places, ancient caves lave been 

completely filled by the later sediments.

palette. In a cave, a more or less flat 

protruding sheet of crystalline calcium 

carbonate spared during solution of the 

rock on each side of it. See also blade; 

shield.

panhole. See solution pan.

park. (Arizona.) Shallow broad solution 

depression.

partition. 1. A nearly vertical residual 

rock mass in a cave. 2. A continuous 

rock span across a cave.

passage. In a cave, the opening between 

rooms or chambers.

pendant, rock pendant. One of a group 

of isolated similarly proportioned projections surrounded by a complex of 

connected cavities in the bedrock ceiling of a cave.

pepino hill. (Puerto Rico.) 1. Rounded 

or conical-shaped hill resulting from 

tropical humid karst action. Term 

generally replaced in Puerto Rico by 

mogote. 2. Elongate hill or ridge 

capped by mogotes.

permeability. The ability of a rock or soil 

to permit water or other fluids to pass 

through it. See also hydraulic conductivity.

phreas, phreatic water. (From the Greek 

word meaning well.) Water in the zone 

of saturation; water below the water 

table.

phreatic surface. See water table.

phreatic zone. The region below, the 

water table, in which rock is saturated with water.

piezometric surface. The imaginary surface to which water from a given aquifer will rise under its full static head. 

Also called potentiometric surface.

pillar. 1. A column of rock remaining 

after solution of the surrounding rock. 

See also rock pillar. 2. A stalactitestalagmite that reaches from roof to 

floor in >a cave; more properly termed 

a column. 3. A tall thin stalagmite that 

does not reach the roof of a cave.
K14 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

pipe. Small cylindrical hole in unconsolidated sediments, caused by removal 

of fine material by water.

piping. Formation of a passage by water 

under pressure in the form of conduits 

through permeable materials when the 

hydraulic head exceeds a certain critical value.

pisolite, pisolith. See cave pearl.

pit. A deep hole, generally circular in 

outline, having vertical or nearly vertical walls. See also pothole (definition 

2) ; shaft.

piton. (French.) Limestone hill having 

sharply pointed peak.

pitted plain. Plain having numerous 

small closely spaced closed depressions.

pocket. Solution cavity in ceiling, floor, 

or walls of a cave, shaped like the interior of a round-bottomed kettle; unrelated to joints or bedding.

polje. (Slavic word for field.) In areas of 

karst topography, a very large closed 

depression, in some places several kilometers long and wide, having a flat 

floor either of bare limestone or covered 

by alluvium, and surrounded by generally steep walla of limestone. 

Synonym, interior valley.

polygonal karst. A karst area where the 

surface is completely pitted with closed 

depressions, the divides of which form 

a crudely polygonal network. Especially 

common in humid tropical cone-karst 

terrain, but also found in well-formed 

temperate doline-karst terrain.

ponor. (Slavic.) Hole in the bottom or 

side of a closed depression through 

which water passes to or from an underground channel. Compare swallet, 

swallow hole.

pool deposit. Crystalline material deposited in an isolated pool in a cave.

pore deposit. Mineral matter deposited 

on the interior of a cave from water 

entering the cave so slowly through 

pores and cracks that it does not form 

drops.

porosity. The ratio of the aggregate volume of interstices in a rock or soil to its 

total volume; generally stated as a 

percentage.

porthole. A nearly circular natural opening in a thin rock wall in a cave. See 

also window.

pothole. 1. A small rounded hole worn into 

rock in a streambed, at a waterfall, or 

near sea level by sand, gravel, and 

stones being spun around by force of 

the currents; a naturr 1 mill. 2. Term 

used in England for vertical or steeply 

inclined shaft in limestone. See also 

pit; shaft.

potholer. (British.) /Seec'ver.

potholing. 1. The process of scouring holes 

in rock in stream beis or near the 

strand line by rapid rotation of trapped 

pebbles or cobbles; evorsion. 2. (British. ) See caving.

pozo. (Spanish.) See simr

pseudokarst. Karstlike terrain produced 

by a process other than the dissolving 

of rock, such as the rourh surface above 

a lava field, where the ceilings of lava 

tubes have collapsed Features of 

pseudokarst include la^a tunnels, lava 

tubes, lava stalactites, and lava 

stalagmites.

B

Randpolje. An enclosed p'ain at the edge 

of a karst area receiving surface water 

from the nonkarstic area. The water 

drains out through underground passages in the karst are-*. The plain is 

thus completely enclosed by higher 

ground. Compare blin<* valley; karst 

margin plain.

recharge area. See intake area.

residual clay. Clay or san^y clay remaining on a rock surface after removal of 

calcium carbonate by solution. Compare 

terra rossa.

resurgence. Point at wl Ich an underground stream reaches the surface and 

becomes a surface stream. In European 

literature, the term is reserved for the 

reemergence of a strean that has earlier sunk upstream; tl » term exsurgence is applied to a stream without 

known surface headwaters.

rice paddy. In a cave, a terraced rimstone 

pool.
A GLOSSARY OF KABST TERMINOLOGY K15

rift. A long narrow high cave passage 

controlled by joints or faults.

rill. Small solution groove on surface exposures of limestone; most common 

in arid or semiarid areas.

Rillenstein. (German.) Microsolution 

grooves and pitting on rock surface.

rimstone. Calcareous deposits formed 

around the rims of overflowing basins, 

especially in caves.

rimstone barrage, rimstone barrier, rimstone dam. A wall-shaped deposit that 

impounds pools of water in caves, 

around springs, and in cascades of 

streams saturated with calcium bicarbonate. Synonym, gour.

rimstone pool. Pool kept in place by a 

rimstone dam.

rise. (Jamaica.) Spring rising from fractures in limestone. Point at which an 

underground stream comes to the 

surface.

rising. See emergence; exsurgence; resurgence.

rock fall. See cave breakdown.

rock pendant. See pendant.

rock pillar. A residual isolated mass of 

bedrock linking the roof or overhanging wall and floor of a cave, in contrast 

with a column, which is composed of 

dripstone or flowstone. See column; 

pillar.

rock pinnacle. A tall sharp projection of 

bedrock rising from the floor of a cave.

rock shelter. Shallow cave under an overhanging rock ledge. Many sea caves are 

rock shelters. Also found in limestone 

and other rock types where streams 

have undercut their banks at bends, or 

where there has been abrasion by blowing sand. Common in tropical areas at 

places where a secondarily hardened 

layer of limestone forms a ledge that 

projects over unindurated limestone.

roof crust. Flowstone deposited on ceilings of caves from thin films of water, 

which have crept over the rock from 

pore or crack sources.

roof slab. See ceiling slab.

room. A part of a cave system that is 

wider than a passage. Synonym (England.), chamber.

sand pipe. See solution pipe.

sand stalagmite. A stalagmite formed on 

sand and made of calcite cemented 

sandstone.

saturation, zone of. See zone of saturation.

scaling chip. A thin small rather irregular 

piece of limestone, commonly crumbly, 

which has fallen from the ceiling or 

wall of a cave. A form of cove breakdown.

scaling plate. A small flat pie?e of rock 

of rectangular or polygonal shape, that 

has fallen to the floor of a cave. A form 

of cave breakdown in thin-lMded impure limestone cut by closely spaced 

joints.

scallop. Oval hollow having an asymmetric cross section along its main axis. 

Scallops form patterns on tt i walls of 

caves and in streambeds and were used 

by Bretz to determine direct'on of flow 

of turbulent water, since they are 

steeper on the upstream pide. Commonly called flutes in America.

scar. (Northern England.) f^eep rock 

cliff in limestone country.

sea cave. A cave or cleft in a sea cliff 

eroded by waves or currerts or dissolved by water. Compare ni>

shaft. 1. A cylindrical tube generally 

steep sided, that forms by solution and 

(or) collapse. 2. A vertical passage in 

a cave. See afoopit; pothole (definition 

2).

shake, shakehole. (England; sometimes 

spelled shackhole.) 1. T^rm used 

mainly by cavers to indicate a doline, 

especially one formed by sul Mdence. 2. 

Hole formed by solution, subsidence, 

and compaction in loose drift or alluvium overlying beds of limestone.

shawl. Simple triangular-shap?d curtain.

sheet. A thin coating of calc'um carbonate formed on walls, shelves, benches, 

and terraces by trickling water.

shield. A disk-shaped speleothem standing edgewise at a high angle.

sima. (Spanish.) Natural we1 1 that has 

vertical sides.
K16 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

sink, sinkhole. (American.) General 

terms for closed depressions. They may 

be basin, funnel, or cylindrical shaped. 

See also closed depression; doline; 

swallet, swallow hole.

sinkhole plain. (American.) Plain on 

which most of the local relief is due to 

closed depressions and nearly all 

drainage is subterranean.

sinkhole pond. (American.) Small lake in 

closed depression in limestone, due to 

an impervious clay floor or to intersection of depression with the water 

table.

sinking creek. A small stream that disappears underground. See also lost 

river; swallet, swallow hole.

sinter. A mineral precipitate deposited 

by a mineral spring, either hot or cold. 

Siliceous sinter, consisting of silica, is 

also called geyserite and fiorite; calcareous sinter, consisting of calcium 

carbonate, is also called tufa, travertine, and onyx marble.

siphon. In speleology, a cave passage in 

which the ceiling dips below a water 

surface. See also water trap.

slump pit. A hollow in the clay fill of a 

cave floor caused by erosion beneath 

the fill.

soil air. The air that fills soil and rock 

interstices above the zone of saturation.

solution. 1. The change of matter from 

a solid or gaseous state to a liquid 

state by combination with a liquid. 2. 

The result of such change; a liquid 

combination of a liquid and a nonliquid substance.

solution breccia. A mass of rock composed of angular to rounded fragments 

of rock that have accumulated by solution of surrounding or underlying carbonate. See also collapse breccia.

solution lake. A lake whose origin is 

attributed largely to solution of underlying rock.

solution pan. Shallow solution basin 

formed on bare limestone, generally 

characterized by flat bottom and overhanging sides. Synonyms, Kamenitza ; 

Opferkessel; panhole; tinajita.

solution pipe. A vertical cylindrical hole 

attributable to solution, often without 

surface expression, filled with debris, 

such as sand, clay, rock chips, and 

bones. Synonym, sand pipe. See also 

geologic organ.

solution scarp. Escarpment formed by 

more active solution of lower area or 

by corrosional undercutting of the base 

of the escarpment.

solution subsidence. Any subsidence due 

to solution of underlying rock but particularly the subsidence of parts of a 

formation into hollows or pockets of 

an immediately underlying soluble 

formation.

sotano. (Spanish for cellar or basement.) 

Term used in Mexico for deep vertical 

shafts in limestone, which may or may 

not lead to a cave.

spelean. Of, pertaining to, or related to 

caves.

speleogen. A secondary cave structure 

formed by dissolving, s ich as a dome 

pit or a scallop.

speleologist. A scientist engaged in the 

study and exploration of caves, their 

environment, and their biota.

speleology. The scientific study, exploration, and description of caves and related features.

speleothem. A secondary nineral deposit 

formed in caves, such as stalactite or 

stalagmite. Synonym, cave formation.

spelunker. See caver.

spelunking. See caving.

Spitzkegelkarst. (Germrn.) Tropical 

karst topography contrining sharply 

pointed residual limestone hills.

splash cup. The shallow concavity in the 

top of a stalagmite.

spongework. A complex o^ irregular interconnecting cavities with intricate 

perforation of the rock. The cavities 

may be large or small.

spring. Any natural discharge of water 

from rock or soil onto the surface of 

the land or into a body of surface 

water.

squeeze. A narrow passage or opening 

just passable with effort. Differs from 

flattener in that there is little spare 

space in any direction.
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K17

stagmalite. A general term including stalactite and stalagmite. Superseded by 

dripstone.

stalactite. A cylindrical or conical deposit of minerals, generally calcite, 

formed by dripping water, hanging 

from the roof of a cave, generally having a hollow tube at its center. From 

Greek word meaning exude drops.

stalagmite. A deposit of calcium carbonate rising from the floor of a limestone 

cave, formed by precipitation from a 

bicarbonate solution through loss of 

CO2 . The water drops on the stalagmite 

from above. From Greek word meaning 

drip. See also dripstone.

stalagmite, capillary. See capillary sta« 

lagmite.

steephead. A deeply cut valley, generally 

short, terminating at its upslope end 

in an amphitheater, at the foot of 

which a stream may emerge.

straw stalactite. Thin tubular stalactite, 

generally less than a centimeter in 

diameter and of very great length (examples as long as 4 meters) ; also called 

soda straw.

stream sink. Point at which a surface 

stream sinks into the ground. See also 

ponor; swallet, swallow hole.

streamtube. A cave passage completely 

filled, or formerly filled, with fast-moving water and whose ceiling and walls 

normally possess scallops.

struga. (Slavic.) A corridor formed along 

a bedding plane in karst country.

subjacent karst. Karst landscape in noncarbonate rocks due to presence of 

karstified rocks beneath the surface 

formation.

submarine spring. Large offshore emergence, generally from cavernous limestone, but in some areas from beds of 

lava.

subsidence. Lowering of the surface of 

the ground because of removal of support. Caused in karst areas by subterranean solution or collapse of caves.

subterranean river. Underground stream 

of flowing water, not necessarily large.

sumidero. (Spanish.) 1. A swallow hole. 

2. In Latin America, any closed depression caused by solution.

sump. 1. A water trap. 2. A poo1 of underground water or point on an underground stream that has a submerged 

extension, the nature of whi°h has not 

been determined.

suspended water. See vadose vater.

swallet, swallow hole. (England.) A place 

where water disappears underground 

in a limestone region. A swallow hole 

generally implies water loss in a closed 

depression or blind valley, whereas a 

swallet may refer to water loss into 

alluvium at a streambed, even though 

there is no depression. See also ponor; 

sink, sinkhole; stream sink.

syngenetic karst. Karst developed in 

eolian calcarenite where lithification of 

dune sands and productior of karst 

phenomena occurred simultaneously.

terra rossa. Reddish-brown soil mantling 

limestone bedrock; may be residual in 

some places.

terraced flowstone. Shallow rimstone 

pools on outward-sloping walls. See also 

rimstone barrage, rimstone barrier, 

rimstone dam; constructive waterfall.

thermokarst. A pitted periglacial or 

former perigiacial svrface in superficial deposits, produced by settling or 

caving of the ground after melting of 

ground ice. Synonym, cryokarst.

thermokarst pit. Steep-walled depression 

formed by thermokarst processes.

threshold. That part of a cave system to 

which light penetrates in so^ne degree.

through cave. Cave through which a 

stream runs from entrance to exit or 

formerly did so. Synonym, (German.) 

Durchgangshohle.

tidewell. See ebb and flow spring, ebbing 

and flowing well.

tinajita. (Spanish.) See solution pan.

torca. (Spanish.) Large closed depression, more or less circular; a doline.
K18 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

torricellian chamber. A submerged airfilled chamber of a cave at a pressure 

below atmospheric pressure, sealed by 

water, having an air-water surface 

above that of adjacent free air-water 

surfaces.

tourelle. (French.) A little tower; applied to small flat-topped buttes of 

limestone in karst areas. Contrasted 

with pitons, which have pointed tops, 

and with coupoles, which have rounded 

tops.

tower karst, Turmkarst. Karst topography characterized by isolated limestone hills separated by areas of alluvium or other detrital sand; towers are 

generally steep-sided forest-covered 

hills, and many have flat tops.

tracers. Materials, such as chemicals, 

dyes, radioactive salts, and light insoluble solids introduced into underground waters to determine points of 

egress of the water and its velocity.

trap* See siphon; water trap.

travertine. Calcium carbonate, CaCO», 

light in color and generally concretionary and compact, deposited from solution in ground and surface waters. 

Extremely porous or cellular varieties 

are known as calcareous tufa, calcareous sinter, or spring deposit. Compact banded varieties, capable of taking 

a polish, are called onyx marble or cave 

onyx.

troglobite. An animal living permanently 

underground in the dark zone of caves 

and only accidentally leaving it.

troglodyte. A human cavedweller.

troglophile. An animal habitually entering the dark zone of a cave but necessarily spending part of its existence 

outside such as some species of bats.

troglophobe. An animal or person unable 

physically or psychologically to enter 

the dark zone of a cave or other underground area.

trogloxene. An animal entering a cave 

for various reasons but not living there 

permanently.

tube. A smooth-surfaced cave passage of 

elliptical or nearly circular cross 

section.

tufa. See sinter; travertine.

tunnel. See natural tunn«l.

turlough. (Ireland.) A depression in 

limestone or in glacial drift over limestone that is liable to flood either from 

excess surface runoff or from rising 

ground water. From tv«i Irish words 

tuar loch, meaning drj- lake.

Turmkarst. (German.) See tower karst.

U

underground river. See subterranean 

river.

upside-down channel. See ceiling channel.

uvala. Large closed depression formed by 

the coalesence of severrl dolines; compound doline. See also canyon; karst 

valley; valley sink.

vadose water. Water ir the zone of 

aeration; water abov^ the zone of 

saturation.

valley sink. (American.) An elongated 

closed depression or series of interconnecting depressions forming a valleylike depression. Compare karst 

valley; uvala.

vauclusian spring. A larp> spring or exsurgence of an underground river, generally from limestone, that varies 

greatly in output and is impenetrable 

except with diving aprmratus. Synonym, gushing spring.

vug. A small cavity in rock usually lined 

with crystals. Adjective, vuggy. See 

also geode.

W

wall block. A roughly cubical joint-controlled large block of limestone or dolomite, which has rotatec1 outward from 

a cave wall. See also crve breakdown; 

wall slab.

wall pocket. See pocket.

wall slab. A thin but larg<> block of rock, 

which has fallen outward from the 

wall of a cave in limestone in which the 

dip is nearly vertical. See also cave 

breakdown.
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K19

wang. Malayan name for polje.

water table. The upper boundary of an 

unconfined zone of saturation, along 

which the hydrostatic pressure is equal 

to the atmospheric pressure.

water trap. A place where the roof of a 

chamber or passage of a cave dips 

under water but lifts again farther on. 

Synonym, trap.

well. 1. A shaft or hole sunk into the 

earth to obtain water, oil, gas, or minerals. 2. A deep vertical rounded hole 

or shaft in the floor of a cave or at 

the bottom of a closed depression.

window. 1. In speleology, a natural opening above the floor of a passage or a 

room, giving access to an adjoining 

cavity or to the surface; larger and 

less symmetrical than a porthole. 2. The 

opening under the arch of a small natural bridge. 3. See karst window.

Z

zanjon. (Spanish.) In Puerto Pico, solution trench in limestone. Zanjones 

range from a few centimeters to about

3 meters in width and from rbout 1 to

4 meters in depth. Apparently they 

form by the widening and deepening of 

joints by solution. See also bc<raz; corridor; struga.

zone of aeration. The zone in permeable 

soil or rock that is above the zone 

saturated with water; the zone of 

vadose water.

zone of saturation. The zone in permeable soil or rock that is saturated with 

water; the phreatic zone.

Zwischenhohle. (German.) Cave in 

which a river passage, or former river 

passage, is entered from above or laterally and which can be for owed upstream and downstream som? distance 

but not to daylight
CLASSIFICATION OF TERMS

Caves, depositional features

anemolite

anthodite

apron

bacon

balcony

blanket

bone breccia

botryoid

breakdown

calcite bubble

calcite flottante

canopy

capillary stalagmite

cave blister

cave breakdown

cave breccia

cave coral

cave earth, cave fill

cave flower

cave formation

cave marble

cave onyx

cave pearl

ceiling block

ceiling slab

chockstone

choke

clay fill

clusterite

column

conulite

crust stone

crystal pool

curtain

decoration

drapery

driphole

dripstone

eccentric

floe calcite

flowstone

formation

fresco

gour

grape formation

gypsum flower

helictite

heligmite

knobstone

moonmilk

mud stalagmite

onyx marble

oulopholite

pillar

pisolite, pisolith

pool deposit

pore deposit

rice paddy

rimstone barrage, r'Tistone barrier,

rimstone dam 

rimstone pool 

rock fall 

roof crust 

roof slab 

sand stalagmite 

scaling chip 

scaling plate 

shawl 

sheet 

shield 

speleothem 

splash cup 

stagmalite 

stalactite 

stalagmite

stalagmite, capillary 

straw stalactite 

terraced flowstone 

wall block 

wall slab

K20
A GLOSSARY OP KARST TERMINOLOGY K21

Caves, erosional and solutional features

anastomosis hanging blade

blade keyhole

boxwork palette

canyon partition

cave-in pendant

ceiling cavity pillar

ceiling channel pocket

ceiling meander porthole

ceiling pocket rock pendant

ceiling tube rock pillar

collapse breccia rock pinnacle

conical wall niche scallop 

crescentic wall niche 

current marking Deckenkarren speleogen

dome pit spongework

driphole tabe

facet upside-down channel

floor pocket wall pocket

flute well

half tube window

Caves, kinds

abime Halbhohle

abris sous roche ice cave

active cave jama

aven joint-plane cave

bedding-plane cave labyrinth

blowing cave lava cave

cave live cava

cave group maze.cave

cave series natural tunnel

cave system network

crystal cave rock shelter

cueva sea cave

dead cave shaft

dry cave sima

Durchgangshohle sotano

fault cave through cave

fissure cave tunnel

glacier cave Zwischenhb'hle
K22 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

Caves, parts

air pocket flattener

aisle foiba

aven gallery

branchwork grotto

bridge hall

cavern lake

cavernous level

chamber light hole

chasm meander

chimney meander niche

chute passage

corridor rift

crawl, crawlway room

cul-de-sac shaft

daylight hole siphon

dead end squeeze

dome pit streamtube

duck-under threshold

Chemical, mineral, and rock terms

aeolianite eolian calcarenite

aggressive water floe calcite

aragonite fluorescein

beachrock geode

bicarbonate globularite

calc- guano

calcarenite gypsum

calcareous hardness

calcareous tufa kankar, kunkar

calcilutite karst breccia

calcirudite lime

calcite limestone

calcite flottante marble

calcrete marl

caliche Mexican onyx

carbonate moonmilk

cave guano onyx marble

cave ice residual clay

cave marble rimstone

cave onyx sinter

chalk solution breccia

chert terra rossa

collapse breccia tracers 

dog-tooth crystal, dog-tooth spar travertine

dolomite tufa

dune limestone vug
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K23

Hydrotoffic terms

aeration, zone of 

aggressive water 

alternative 

aquifer 

blowing well 

blue hole 

boiling spring 

cave ice 

cave spring 

conduit

diffuse circulation 

doline lake

ebb and flow spring, ebbing and flowing well 

effluent cave 

emergence

epiphreas, epiphreatic zone 

estavelle 

exsurgence 

free-surface stream 

ground air 

ground water 

gushing spring 

hydraulic conductivity 

inflow cave, influent cave 

intake area 

inverted siphon 

karst hydrology 

karst river 

karst spring 

localized circulation 

lost river 

ojo, ojo de agua 

outflow cave

permeability

phreas, phreatic water

phreatic surface

phreatic zone

piezometric surface

ponor

porosity

recharge area

resurgence

rise

rising

saturation, zone of

sinkhole pond

sinking creek

soil air

spring

stream sink

submarine spring

subterranean river

sump

suspended water

swallet, swallow hole

tidewell

torricellian chamber

trap

underground river

vadose water

vaudusian spring

water table

water trap

well

zone of aeration

zone of saturation

Karst, depression features

aguada

blind valley

bogaz

bourne

calanque

canale

canyon

cave-in

cenote

closed depression

cockpit

collapse sink

corridor

cove

doline

dry valley

etched pothole

geological organ

glade

gulf

half-blind valley

hoya, hoyo

Kamenitza

Karrenfeld

karst bridge

karst fens

karst fenster

karst lake
K24 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES

karst margin plain Randpolje

karst pond rill

karst valley Rillenstein

karst window rock shelter

Karstrandebene shake, shakehole

katavothron sima

lapie"s sink, sinkhole

lime sink sinkhole plain

limestone sink sinkhole pond

lost river solution lake

marginal polje solution pan

minor karst features steephead

natural arch stream sink

natural bridge struga

natural tunnel sumidero

natural well swallet, swallow hole

nested sinkholes thermokarst pit

^ , tinajita Opferkessel

, torca ouvala panhole tunnel

park turlough

pit uvala

polje valley sink

ponor wang

pothole window

pozo zanj<5n

Karst, httl features

constructive waterfall rnogote

coupole pepino hill

cupola piton

fungling scar

haystack hill solution scarp

hum tourelle

Karst, kinds

arSte and pinnacle karst Halbkugelkarst

bare karst holokarst

buried karst karst

causse karst barre"

cockpit karst karst plain

cone karst karst topography

covered karst karstland

crevice karst Kegelkarst

eryokarst limestone pavement

exhumed karst merokarst

fluviokarst microkarst

fossil karst naked karst

glaciokarst paleokarst
A GLOSSARY OF KARST TERMINOLOGY K25

pitted plain 

polygonal karst 

pseudokarst 

Spitzkegelkarst 

subjacent karst

bogaz

clint

corridor

current marking

cutter

Deckenkarren

etched pothole

facet

flute

grike

gryke

Kamenitza

base level, karst

bed

bedding plane

biospeleology

blowhole

blowing well

calccave

cave-in

caver

cavernous

caving

clay filling

fluorescein

formation

Karrenfeld

karst

karst base level

karstic

alveolization

backflooding

calcification

corrasion

corrosion

decalcification

dissolution

dolomitization

syngenetic karst 

thermokarst 

tower karst 

Turmkarst

Karst forms, minor

Karren

lapi£s

limestone pavement

Opferkessel

rill

sand pipe

scallop

solution pan

solution pipe

tinajita

zanjfin

Miscellaneous terms

kras, krs"

limestone pavement

lycopodium spores

pipe

potholer

potholing

sand pipe

solution pipe

spelean

speleologist

speleology

spelunker

spelunking

troglobite

troglodyte

troglophile

troglophobe

trogloxene

Processes

evorsion

karstification

Mischungskorrosion

piping

potholing

solution

solution subsidence

subsidence
K26 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY OP THE UNITED STATES

SELECTED REFERENCES

American Geological Institute, 1957, Glossary of geology and related sciences: 

Washington, Am. GeoL Inst, Natl. Acad. of ScL-NatL Research Council 

Pub. 501,825 p.

 1960, Supplement to the glossary of geology and related sconces: Washington, Am. Geol. Inst, 72 p.

Bogli, Alfred, 1960, Kalklosung und Karrenbildung, in Internationale Beitrage 

zur Karstmorphologie: Zeitschr. Geomorphologie, Supp. 2, p. 4-21.

 1964, Mischungskorrosion, ein Beitrag zum Verkarstungsproblem:

Erdkunde, y. 18, no. 2, p. 83-92. 

Bretz, J Harlan, 1942, Vadose and phreatic features of limestone caverns: Jour.

Geology, v. 50, no. 6, p. 675-811. 

Cullingford, C. H. D., ed., 1953, British caving an introduction to speleology:

London, Boutledge and Kegan Paul, Ltd., 468 p. (2d ed., 1962.) 

Davis, W. M., 1930, Origin of limestone caverns: GeoL Soc. America Bull., v. 41,

p. 475-628. 

Fenelon, Paul, 1968, Vocabulaire f rangais des phenomenes karstiqr^s: Memoires

et Documents, Centre de Rechercb.es et Documentation CartCTaphiques et

G6ographiques, Nouvelle S6rie, v. 4, p. 13-68. 

Muma, M. H., and Muma, EL E., 1944, A glossary of speleology: NatL Speleol.

Soc. Bull. no. 6, p. 1-10. Also in Pinney, Roy, 1962. The complete book of cave

exploration: New York, Coward-McCann, Inc., p. 207-233. 

Stamp, L. D., ed., 1961, A glossary of geographical terms: New Yor*:, John Wiley

and Sons, Inc., 539 p. 

Trimmel, Hubert, 1965, Spelaologiscb.es Fachworterbuch (Fachw"rterbuch der

Karst-und Hb'hlenkunde) : Vienna, Landesverein fiir Hohlenl-uide in Wien

und Niederdsterreich, 109 p.

U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1972 O - 489-369