UIS Commission on Karst Hydrogeology and Speleogenesis

The Geological Society of America’s (GSA) South-Central Section will meet on 4-5 April 2013 in Austin, Texas and include some excellent cave and karst sessions and field trips. The deadline for abstracts is 15 January 2013.

See this event at the Speleogenesis Calendar.

For more details, visit this site

Session 29:
A Tale of Two Aquifers: Deciphering Characteristics of the Edwards and Trinity Aquifers in Central Texas.
Marcus Gary (Edwards Aquifer Authority).

DESCRIPTION: This special session will be held at Natural Bridge Caverns, a large commercial cave that is formed in both the Edwards and Trinity Group limestones. Includes a poster session, cave tour, dinner, drinks, and a special oral session held underground in the cave.

Field Trip 4:
Friesenhahn Cave: Late Pleistocene Paleoecology and the Predator-Prey Relationships of Mammoths with the Extinct Scimitar Cat.
Sat., 6 April
Cost: US$75, includes transportation, lunch and beverages, fieldtrip guidebook and supplemental materials.
Russell W. Graham (EMS Museum, The Pennsylvania State University); Ernest L. Lundelius, Jr. (Vertebrate Paleontology Laboratory, J.J. Pickle Research Center, University of Texas at Austin); Laurence Meissner (Dept. of Biology, Concordia University).

DESCRIPTION: The trip will visit Friesenhahn Cave, a well-known late Pleistocene fossil vertebrate locality since the turn of the 20th century. Participants will be able to go into the cave and see its physical environment. Climbing down a thirty foot ladder is required to enter the cave. Inside the cave, field trip leaders will discuss the history and locations of previous excavations of the cave, its stratigraphy (although all excavation areas have been backfilled) and age of the deposits, and its paleoecological significance. The age structure of the Scimitar cat sample and the predator-prey relationship between juvenile mammoths and the extinct scimitar cat will also be discussed in detail.

Field Trip 6:
Traversing the Trinity and Edwards Karst Aquifers along the Blanco River Basin.
Sat., 6 April
Cost: US$93, includes transportation, lunch, and a field guide.
Marcus Gary (Edwards Aquifer Authority).

DESCRIPTION: This field trip will be convened in coordination with the Hydro Days workshop, and will include camping at Jacob's Well Spring (optional) Friday and Saturday nights, two stops at recharge locations along the Blanco River, and stops at Barton and San Marcos Springs. The theme of the field trip will coincide with the karst symposium at Natural Bridge Caverns on Friday, April 5. We invite karst researchers, educators, students, policy makers, cavers, and karst lovers of all persuasions to join Hydrodays and encourage you to take part in all of the activities that your schedule will permit.

Field Trip 12:
A Tale of Two Aquifers: Deciphering Characteristics of the Edwards and Trinity Aquifers in Central Texas.
Co-sponsored by Edwards Aquifer Authority
Fri., 5 April
Cost: $50. Includes hors d'oeuvres, beverages, and entrance fee to the cave.
Marcus Gary, (Edwards Aquifer Authority)

DESCRIPTION: This special field trip/session will be held at Natural Bridge Caverns, a large commercial cave that is formed in both the Edwards and Trinity Group limestones. Includes a poster session, cave tour, dinner, drinks, and a special oral session held underground in the cave. This field trip begins and ends at the cavern, which is approximately 70 miles from the AT&T Center. If you are interested in presenting your abstract during this field trip, please submit your abstract to Theme Session 29, prior to the abstracts deadline of 15 January.