A surprisingly large diversity of animals both aquatic and terrestrial spend their lives in caves, if not all the time, part of the time. The temperature in caves is a fairly constant 55-58 degrees Fahrenheit. The entrance to the cave is called the entrance zone. This area of the cave is often used by birds. They use the mouth of the cave as protection from the weather, and some birds like vultures sometimes raise their chicks there.
Snakes also use the entrance to the cave, especially in hot summer months.
The cooler air helps a snake s body temperature, but they don t usually venture farther into the cave, for there is little food there. Salamanders can also be found in the entrance area, but they also live on the outside. The leaf litter that blows into caves may house small millipedes, centipedes, terrestrial isopods, terrestrial snails, earthworms and various insects. Flies and mosquitoes move into the deeper parts of the cave during the winter. As you move deeper into the cave, where there is much less light, fewer animals can be found.