THE ARTS AND HISTORICAL REMAINS IN THE CAVE TEMPLES IN IPOH, MALAYSIA

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the arts and historical remains in the cave temples of Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia. Ipoh is well known for its numerous limestone cave temples. Based on the fieldwork survey from 2016 to 2020, Ipoh has 50 cave temples. Before the survey, the number of cave temples in Ipoh was unknown. These cave temples can be divided into three types based on their physical appearances. The paper discusses the arts and historical remains kept in selected cave temples that were established before World War II. The arts discussed in this paper can be divided into visual and literary arts, such as mural, drawing, statue and poetry. The majority of the historical remains taken are archival and epigraphical materials. The epigraphical materials are carved in bronze bells, wooden tablets, brass censers, stone inscriptions, and other materials. This paper aims to highlight the diversity of the arts and historical remains in Nusantara.

A new species of Caridina H. Milne Edwards, 1837 (Family: Atyidae) from a limestone cave on Interview Island, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India

Caridina ravisankarani sp. nov. is a cave-adapted species, collected during June and November 2018 and January 2019 from a limestone cave (CN2) on Interview Island, Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The shrimps were collected from a stream, sourced through the percolation of rainwater, which reduces during the post-monsoon months. The species is closely related to Caridina typus H. Milne Edwards, 1837, Caridina villadolidi Blanco, 1939 and Caridina jeani Cai, 2010. A detailed comparison of characters and a key for identification are given in the text. The present species can be diagnosed by the presence of: short rostum with edentulous upper margin and ventral margin with 2 minute teeth situated at the distal part; outer antennular flagellum with 16 segments at the basal part swollen; highly atrophied propodus and dactylus of endopod of 2nd maxilliped; bushy long setae on fingers of 2nd chelate legs; dactylus of 5th pereopod with 42–43 comb-like bristles; dieresis with 18 spines; dorsal surface of telson with 4–5 pairs of spines and disto-median region doesn’t end in a point, outer lateral pair of spines absent and eyes with cornea pigmentation variable, from totally absent to a small black spot. Fecundity is 1300 eggs with an average length 0.71±0.03 mm and width 0.42±0.03 mm (Mean±SD).

Two new genera and three new species of cavernicolous trechines from the western Wuling Mountains, China (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechinae)

Two new genera and three new species of cave-adapted ground beetles belonging to the tribe Trechini are established and described: Wulongius qilingergen. nov. and sp. nov. from limestone cave Qiankou Dong (Chongqing: Wulong), Qianotrechus congcongaesp. nov. from cave Shigao Dong (Chongqing: Nanchuan), and Qianlongius zhouigen. nov. and sp. nov. from cave Qianlong Dong (Guizhou: Songtao). Wulongius qilingersp. nov. is a small aphaenopsian beetle with a thin and elongated body, while Qianlongius zhouisp. nov. is a semi-aphaenopsian with a stout body. Both new genera are not closely related to any genus of Trechini occurring in the South China Karst, and so their systematic positions remain unclear.

First report of leopard fossils from a limestone cave in Kenting area, southern Taiwan

Longshia-dong Cave, a limestone cave located in the Kenting area within the Kenting National Park of southern Taiwan, yields numerous terrestrial mammalian fossils. Many of them were not reported in historical literature and are neither present in Taiwan. For instance, no historical literature mentioned leopards inhabited in Taiwan, and thus their existence remained unknown. This study describes three fossil leopard (Panthera pardus) teeth uncovered from Longshia-dong Cave. Two isolated lower premolars and one lower molar, respectively p3, p4 and m1, were discovered in a very small area (11 × 6 cm) and show a series of progressive increase in size. Thus, the three teeth should have been belonging to the same individual from the subfamily of Pantherinae. Traditional linear measurements and two-dimensional geometric morphometric analysis for the occlusal surface outlines were conducted on the fossil teeth and extant pantherines inhabited in Asia such as clouded leopards (Neofelis nebulosa), leopards (Panthera pardus), and tigers (Panthera tigiris). Results show that the fossil teeth are similar both in size and morphology to the teeth of extant leopards, suggesting the assignment of the fossil teeth to leopards. This study, for the first time, reported the presence of leopards in the Late Pleistocene of Taiwan. In addition, the smaller size of the fossil teeth in comparison with Chinese fossil leopards is putatively attributed to insular dwarfism or individual size variability, yet more studies are required.

Ganxiao Dong: A Hotspot of Cave Biodiversity in Northern Guangxi, China

Located in the core zone of Mulun National Nature Reserve in northern Guangxi, the limestone cave Ganxiao Dong harbours the richest cave fauna currently known in China. In total, 26 species of cave invertebrates have been recognized so far, in spite of limited sampling efforts. Of them, 20 are troglobionts or stygobionts, including one snail, four millipedes, three spiders, one harvestman, three isopods, two springtails, two crickets, one non-glowing sticky worm, and three trechine beetles. Six other species are troglophiles. The most remarkable characteristic of this fauna is its high number of troglomorphic species, especially among millipedes, crickets and beetles.

Erebonyx catacumbae, n. gen. et sp.: a blind, troglobitic cricket from Brazil (Orthoptera, Grylloidea, Phalangopsidae)

Erebonyx catacumbae, new genus and species of a troglobitic phalangopsid cricket are described from Brazil. Few specimens were collected from a limestone cave located in the municipality of Campo Formoso, northern State of Bahia, in a semi-arid zone characterized by the Caatinga vegetation. A brief discussion on troglomorphisms is provided, as well as some ecological remarks and potential threats for this species.

The effects of climate change on the Pleistocene rock art of Sulawesi

The equatorial tropics house some of the earliest rock art yet known, and it is weathering at an alarming rate. Here we present evidence for haloclasty (salt crystallisation) from Pleistocene-aged rock art panels at 11 sites in the Maros-Pangkep limestone karsts of southern Sulawesi. We show how quickly rock art panels have degraded in recent decades, contending that climate-catalysed salt efflorescence is responsible for increasing exfoliation of the limestone cave surfaces that house the ~ 45 to 20-thousand-year-old paintings. These artworks are located in the world’s most atmospherically dynamic region, the Australasian monsoon domain. The rising frequency and severity of El Niño-induced droughts from anthropogenic climate change (that is, higher ambient temperatures and more consecutive dry days), combined with seasonal moisture injected via monsoonal rains retained as standing water in the rice fields and aquaculture ponds of the region, increasingly provide ideal conditions for evaporation and haloclasty, accelerating rock art deterioration.

Geosesarma sodalis, a new species of vampire crab (Crustacea, Brachyura, Sesarmidae) from a limestone cave in central Sarawak, Malaysia

A new species of semi-terrestrial crab of the genus Geosesarma (Sesarmidae) is described from a limestone cave in central Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. Geosesarma sodalissp. nov. is characterised by its quadrate carapace, absence of a flagellum on the exopod of the third maxilliped, presence of 10 or 11 sharp tubercles on the dactylus of the chela and a diagnostic male first gonopod structure. This is the sixth species of Geosesarma reported from Sarawak, and the first member of the genus collected from inside caves.

Contribution to the knowledge of subterranean ground beetles from eastern Wuling Mountains, China (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Trechinae)

Two new genera and three new species of troglobitic trechine beetles are described and illustrated from the eastern part of Wuling Mountains: Xiangxius jiangi n. gen., n. sp. and Guizhaphaenopsodes solidior n. gen., n. sp. from the limestone cave Tangle Dong (Jishou, western Hunan Province); Sinotroglodytes hefengensis n. sp. from the limestone cave Qizimei Dong (Hefeng, southwestern Hubei Province). Xiangxius jiangi is a highly modified cave-adapted beetle with elongate body and appendages, recognized by its peculiar elytral shape and remarkable dorsal and marginal umbilicate pores of elytra. Guizhaphaenopsodes solidior is peculiar for its stout body, robust antennae and pigmented forebody, antennae and legs though it shares several generic important characteristics with the genus Guizhaphaenops Vigna Taglianti, 1997. Sinotroglodytes hefengensis has an elongated and parallel-sided head.