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The
Caverna de Las Brujas is located in the district of
Malargüe. The area comprises approximately 450 hectares and was declared a reservation in 1990. The entrance to
the cave is located at an altitude of 1800 metres above
sea level.
Cavern of the Witches, is a particular subterranean
environment, where once again the diversity of the
planet exceeds our capacity of being surprised. Ancient
rocks of marine origin are the home to a huge cavity,
embroidered with bizarre minerals shapes: stalactites,
stalagmites, columns, cast, together form a strange
scenario. More than 3000 metres of galleries have been
developed through levels of calcareous rocks (limestone)
of the Jurassic period. There are sectors or levels with
abundant ammonites, molluscs that dominated the marine
environment during the Jurassic and Cretaceous.
The Cavern is one of the main tourist offers in the
South of Mendoza and annually receives more than 10,000
visitors.
It presents beautiful decorations with different
elements, known as dripstones.
The dripstones are:
"Stalactites": elements in the form of needles hanging from the ceilings of caves.
"Stalagmite": similar to stalactites, but are formed on the floors.
"Columns": the union of stalactites and stalagmites.
"Veils": which are formations similar to drapes.
The walls are decorated with white, yellow and brown
flow deposits. In the deepest part, elements of plaster
can be seen. The most common forms are thick crusts
covering the floor, walls and in some cases, even
obstructing some passages of the cave.
The formation of the Cavern has been explained as a
product of the movement of underground water. During the
lifting of the Andes ridge during the Tertiary period,
the entire region was amended, leaving the limestone in
an almost vertical position and highly fissured. At the
end of the last glacial period, there has been a large
water infiltration favoured by the existence of a high
amount of snow and ice (much higher than what
precipitates today), helping the expansion of
passageways and forming the dripstones.
The archaeological studies made so far, indicate that
the cave was used by Aboriginal people for various
rituals or as a temporary shelter. The secrets of the
flora and fauna of the cavern remain in mystery until
natural scientists and speleologists conduct further
surveys.
It is known that there are bats, spiders, colémbolos (small
insects living in primitive soil organic matter) and
field mice using its galleries as a shelter.
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