1

Nathan Cooley
Norton
English III
May 6th, 2015
Troglo - Morphisms
The sun plays a vital role in the life of the majority of organisms on this planet.
Some might assume that without the sun, life would not be able to function. This thought,
however, is not true. Some organisms manage to survive without every witnessing a ray
of sunlight. These types of organisms, named troglobites, survive off ecosystems within
their caves that provide them with the resources needed to sustain life. A troglobite is a
type of animal that lives entirely within the dark recesses of caves. The types of
troglobites living in these caves range from mammals to bacteria. From bacteria to
mammals, tens of thousands of living species have been described for cave environments
and many more are yet to be discovered (The Evolution of Cave Life). In order to live in
these harsh environments without the warmth of sunlight, the troglobites go through
transformations in order to adapt to the caves. These transformations are known as
troglomorphisms, which are explained as characters associated with cave organisms.
They may include adaptive changes in organ structure and function, metabolism, life
history and behavior (The Evolution of Cave Life). The various troglomorphisms, which
occur to troglobites, such as fat reservoirs taking the place of eyes or extremely slow
metabolisms, are adaptations to aid the organisms on their fight to survive (Discoveries).

2
Animals known as troglobites are able to survive in these harsh environments known as
caves due to several adaptations that benefit the organisms in their life.
Troglobites are an extraordinary example of adaptation. For instance, in the caves
that these troglobites inhabit, complete darkness resides. The darkness renders the use of
sight and eyes for the organisms completely useless. The uselessness of vision has lead to
the loss of eyes as well as certain pigments in some creatures. Pigments (which protect
surface organisms from ultraviolet rays) and eyes disappear; for some creatures, eyeless
sockets serve as fatreservoirs (Discoveries). Since the troglobites live in an environment
almost entirely isolated from the outside world, food is scarce. The troglobites then have
to adapt to this, which in some cases, resulted in fat reservoirs instead of eyes. Another
way in which troglobites have adapted to the lack of food in caves is their extremely low
metabolism and the ability to live for months without consuming. To survive stagnant,
low-oxygen air in dead-end recesses and months without food, many troglobites have
super-slow metabolisms. And because they live slow, they live long (Discoveries). Even
though the troglobites can survive long periods of time without eating, they still need
food nonetheless. Different troglobites proceed in collecting food in different ways.
Troglobites, although most likely will never see the outside world in their life, depend
on it in order to get their food. One specific crustacean troglobite, known as the Belizean
white crab, would not be able to survive if not for the streams which trickle through
caverns. The Belizean white crab takes advantage of different pieces of food which are
dropped in the current outside of the cave. These various meals make their way down
the streams to where the crabs are able to scavenge them to satisfy their hunger (Caves).
These troglobites posses various traits which seem alienated to the world above. For

3
example, while some of the troglobites seem similar in name to their sunny
counterparts, the way they live and survive in these caves compared to the world above
differs exponentially. Normal terrestrial spiders are known for the webs they create in
order to lie in wait and trap their prey, but in the sunken world, the game changes.
Titiotus spiders of Kaweah Cave, blackish and bigger than silver dollars, are more than
twice the size of their surface relatives. They do not spin webs but simply run down prey
and grab them with their spiny legs (Discoveries). The way troglobites have adapted to
their environment in order to survive baffles scientists to this date. Troglobites remain
very mysterious due to the difficulty of researching in the dangerous environment in
which they reside and the troglobites ability to remain hidden. Worldwide, perhaps 90
percent of caves lack visible entrances and remain undiscovered. Even in well-explored
caves, troglobites are expert at hiding. The roughly 7,700 species known are probably
only a small taste of what livesbelow (Discoveries). Despite the lack of knowledge
about the majority of troglobites, some remain reputable as well as their extraordinary
evolutions that help them endure.
The Texas cave salamander is an excellent example of the phenomenal
adaptations that occur to troglobites. The salamander, which sits at an average length
around 5 inches, is no exception to the trend of troglobites having the appearance of an
extraterrestrial organism. This particular troglobite spends most of its time sitting in
streams that cut through the caves. Similar to most troglobites, the Texas cave salamander
has adapted to lose its vision as well as eyes. Instead of sight, the salamander relies on
receptors developed in the skin that detect movement made in the water by its prey
(Caves). After locating prey using these receptors, the salamander uses its flattened snout

4
along with its heightened sense of smell to close in on the potential meal (Focus on
Nature). The cave salamanders life relies on prey washing in from the outside world into
the abyss where the troglobite lives. Because of this, the salamander might not find prey
for several months, which causes its metabolism to become extremely slow (Caves). The
incredibly low metabolism that the blind salamander possesses, results in an extremely
long life which can last up to 100 years (Andriuzzi). The caves in which the troglobites
reside, including the salamander, normally have rather low oxygen levels. The
salamander, in order to adapt to the lack of oxygen, developed red feathery, larval gills
which adorn the sides of the adult salamanders neck to oxygenate its blood (Focus on
Nature). The Texas cave salamander is just one example of the changes which troglobites
experience in their underground cave environment. While the salamander might seem
similar to a monster that appears in a science fiction film, other troglobites remain with
even more fascinating measures to exist in the damp musty holes known as caves.
Another troglobite that survives in the harsh ecosystem of a cave is known as the
cave angelfish. While this fish has the surname angel, its appearance very distant from
seeming angel like. Like most troglobites, the cave angelfish has lost most pigments of
color in its skin. For some reason that scientists are yet to explain, the angelfish has lost
all of its scales. The fish does wear a skin with a sickly red color however this is due to
the blood vessels showing through its pale covering (Burns). The cave angelfish
marvelously lives its life within the waterfalls that the caves have sprouted after years of
erosion. Because of this, the fish is commonly referred to as the Waterfall climbing fish
(Cryptotora). The troglobite uses its snake like body to shimmy up the waterfall where it
uses its fins to lock it in place. Its smooth elongated body allows the water to flow over it

5
with little resistance. This facilitates the fishs ability to latch onto the rocks with its fins.
The fins are able to keep their grips on the slimy rocks due to microscopic hooks that
reside on the underside of them (Caves). Unlike most troglobites the angelfish manages
to find an abundance of food by feeding on the bacteria that flows through the waterfall
(Caves). The angelfish is one of the few troglobites with a reliable food source. However,
regardless of this, only an estimated 2000 of these fish exist in the wild (Cryptotora). The
cave angelfish was subject to extraordinary adaptations from its cave environment that
allows it to survive with relative ease compared to other troglobites. However, not all
troglobites are as large in stature as the cave angelfish and Texas cave salamander.
Certain caves in the world might appear too treacherous for any living organism
to make its home within. For example, the water that flows through the Villa Luz cave in
Mexico is stained white with sulfuric acid. Hydrogen sulfide gas bubbles up from oil
deposits which mixes with the oxygen in the water creating sulfuric acid (Caves). While
this specific cave might seem to toxic for any living thing to inhabit, bacteria have made
a home within. These specific types of bacteria are known as extremophiles due to the
extreme environment in which they live (Caves). Certain extraordinary types of bacteria
that live deep inside the cave form what seem to be bacteria stalactites (Caves). The
bacteria are known as snottites due to the stalactites having the appearance of snot
dripping off a runny nose. Bacteria forming on the ceiling, with sulfuric acid dropping
from the end, make these stalactites over periods of time. The bacteria can grow up to a
centimeter a day and, surprisingly, serves as the basis of a food chain for the larvae of
midges: a type of bug. The lack of sunlight within the caves forces the bacteria to find an
alternative way to gain energy. In order to do so, the bacteria extracts energy from the

6
hydrogen sulfide gas that naturally forms in the area giving the organisms the energy they
require (Caves). Certain troglobite bacteria can also chemosynthesis their organic
matter using the materials found in the cave. A few anaerobic bacteria can
chemosynthesis organic matter using energy from the oxidation of hydrogen by sulphate,
carbonate or nitrate instead of oxygen (Foodchains). Just like the angelfish and the
salamander, the bacteria have developed specialized skills and tools in order to survive
within the dangerous habitat known as a cave.
Caves, and the animals which inhabit them, seem to exist as an alien world
compared to the commonly known wildlife. Troglobites serve as fascinating gateways for
science to discover incredible adaptations that organisms undergo to survive in their
environment. From the loss of eyes, to microscopic hooks that latch onto slick waterfall
rocks, troglobites have endured many dramatic evolutions. The changes in troglobites
provide evidence of the dramatic effect that an animals habitat takes on the organism.
Troglobites are able to find food and function adequately in complete darkness due to
changes their bodies have made to adapt to the environment (Why do cave fish lose their
eyes). Without these adaptations, the animals would not be able to function and
eventually would die off. Troglobites have evolved various bizarre adaptations that give
the organism the ability to survive hundreds of meters underground without any direct
contact to the sun.

7
Works Cited
Andriuzzi, Walter, Yong, Ed, M., Chris, BethSkw, and Emp. "June 2015." The
olm: the blind cave salamander that lives to 100 - Not Exactly Rocket Science : Not
Exactly Rocket Science. n.p., n.d. Web. 1 May 2016
Burns, William. "Cave fish." Cave fish - Student Resources in Context.Gale
Group n.d. Web. 1 May 2016
"Caves." Planet Earth: The Complete Collection. Writ. David Attenborough,
Alastair Fothergill, Vanessa Berlowitz, and Gary Parker. BBC, Apr 22, 2007. DVD.
"Cryptotora thamicola." Cryptotora thamicola (Waterfall Climbing Cave Fish).
n.p., n.d. Web. 24 April 2016
"Discoveries: meet the elusive troglobites, cave-dwelling creatures that navigate
without eyes, go weeks or months without food, and can live for more than a century."
Discoveries: meet the elusive troglobites, cave-dwelling creatures that navigate without
eyes, go weeks or months without food, and can live for more than a century - Student
Resources in Context. n.p., n.d. Web. 29 April 2016
"Focus on nature[TM]: insight into the lives of animals." Focus on nature[TM]:
insight into the lives of animals - Student Resources in Context.n.d. Web. 24 April 2016
"Foodchains." Foodchains - Student Resources in Context.n.d. Web. 22 April
2016
"The evolution of cave life: new concepts are challenging conventional ideas

8
about life underground. The evolution of cave life: new concepts are challenging
conventional ideas about life underground - Student Resources in Context. n.d. Web. 27
April 2016
"Why do cave fish lose their eyes? A Darwinian mystery unfolds in the dark."
Why do cave fish lose their eyes? A Darwinian mystery unfolds in the dark - Student
Resources in Context. Web. 6 May 2016