Other animals spend only part of their lives in caves or cavelike environments. An unlikely group, including raccoons, bullfrogs and pigeons, finds shelter in caves but does not depend on them for food. And sometimes other animals arrive in caves by accident, such as fish or turtles that are washed in by floods. Thirty-one endangered bat caves and four Ozark cavefish caves are gated or fenced to protect them. Signs are posted at other caves, asking visitors not to enter them.
Vandals sometimes break locks or destroy gates and fences and enter anyway.
We hope that as people learn more about caves this needless vandalism will stop. Gray bats are an example of the harm that can be done by interlopers. During the summer months, gray bats raise their young in caves. If these bats are disturbed, they will take flight, and their young may fall to the cave floor, where they will die. Indiana bats are also vulnerable.