Editing Mammoth Cave National Park (section)

==Biology and ecosystem==
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File:223 Mating cave crickets, Pohl-Smith ladder 2 (8320900643).jpg|A mating pair of Cave Crickets of the species ''[[Hadenoecus subterraneus]]''. Found on a Flint ridge. 
File:A cave-adapted millipede in Mammoth Cave National Park.jpg|A cave-adapted millipede found in Mammoth cave 
File:Kentucky cave shrimp (Palaemonias ganteri) (12434722624).jpg|An individual of the species ''[[Palaemonias ganteri]]'', also known as the Kentucky cave shrimp. This species is endemic to this cave system.
File:Orconectes pellucidus (cave crayfish) (Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, USA).jpg|A Cave Crayfish of the species ''[[Orconectes pellucidus]]'' 
File:Eurycea lucifuga in natural habitat.jpg|[[Spotted-tail salamander|''Eurycea lucifuga'']], also known as the Spotted-tail salamander. Unlike other cave salamanders like the [[olm]], this species has functioning eyes, and still has pigment in its skin. 
File:Mammoth Cave National Park EYELESSF.jpg|''[[Amblyopsis spelaea]]'' (the northern cavefish) is a blind species of cave fish. 
</gallery>The following species of bats inhabit the caverns: [[Indiana bat]] (''Myotis sodalis''), [[gray bat]] (''Myotis grisescens''), [[little brown bat]] (''Myotis lucifugus''), [[big brown bat]] (''Eptesicus fuscus''), and the [[tricolored bat]] (''Perimyotis subflavus'').

All together, these and more rare bat species such as the [[eastern small-footed bat]] had estimated populations of 9–12 million just in the Historic Section. While these species still exist in Mammoth Cave, their numbers are now no more than a few thousand at best. [[Ecological restoration]] of this portion of Mammoth Cave, and facilitating the return of bats, is an ongoing effort. Not all bat species here inhabit the cave; the red bat (''[[Lasiurus borealis]]'') is a forest-dweller, as found underground only rarely.

Other animals that inhabit the caves include: three species of [[cave cricket]]s (''[[Hadenoecus|Hadenoecus subterraneus]]'', ''[[Ceuthophilus stygius]]'', and ''[[Ceuthophilus latens]]''), a [[cave beetle]] (''[[Pseudanophthalmus inexpectatus]]''),{{r|NPS:ISCM}} various species of [[fishing spider]]s (''[[Dolomedes]]'' spp.), a [[cave salamander]] (''[[Eurycea lucifuga]]''), two species of eyeless [[cavefish]] (''[[Typhlichthys subterraneus]]'' and ''[[Amblyopsis spelaea]]''), a [[cave crayfish]] (''[[Orconectes pellucidus]]''), and the [[Kentucky cave shrimp]] (''[[Palaemonias ganteri]]''). In addition, some surface animals may take refuge in the entrances of the caves but do not generally venture into the deep portions of the cavern system.

The section of the Green River that flows through the park is legally designated as "Kentucky Wild River" by the Kentucky General Assembly, through the [[Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves]]' Wild Rivers Program.

According to the [[A. W. Kuchler]] U.S. [[Potential natural vegetation]] Types, Mammoth Cave National Park has an [[Oak]]/[[Hickory]] (''100'') potential vegetation type with an Eastern Hardwood [[Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest]] (''25'') potential vegetation form.<ref name="Conservation Biology Institute">{{cite web|url=https://databasin.org/datasets/1c7a301c8e6843f2b4fe63fdb3a9fe39|publisher=Data Basin|access-date=2019-07-15|title=U.S. Potential Natural Vegetation, Original Kuchler Types, v2.0 (Spatially Adjusted to Correct Geometric Distortions)|archive-date=2019-07-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190703145441/https://databasin.org/datasets/1c7a301c8e6843f2b4fe63fdb3a9fe39|url-status=live}}</ref>

Common fossils of the cave include [[crinoid]]s, [[blastoid]]s, and [[gastropod]]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fossils - Mammoth Cave National Park (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/maca/learn/nature/fossils.htm |publisher=MACA |access-date=2 February 2020 |language=en |archive-date=2 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200202193624/https://www.nps.gov/maca/learn/nature/fossils.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The Mississippian limestone has yielded fossils of more than a dozen species of shark. In 2020, scientists reported the discovery of part of a ''[[Saivodus|Saivodus striatus]]'', a species comparable in size to a modern great white shark.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=David |title=Scientists have found a 330-million-year-old shark's head fossilized in a Kentucky cave |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/mammoth-cave-sharks-scn-trnd/index.html |access-date=2 February 2020 |work=CNN |language=en |archive-date=1 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200201003732/https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/mammoth-cave-sharks-scn-trnd/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The fossil shark species ''[[Glikmanius|Glikmanius careforum]]'' and ''[[Troglocladodus|Troglocladodus trimblei]]'' are known exclusively from within the cave.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schroer |first=Molly |date=1 February 2024 |title=Two new species of ancient sharks identified through research at Mammoth Cave National Park |url=https://www.nps.gov/maca/learn/news/two-new-species-of-ancient-sharks-identified-through-research-at-mammoth-cave-national-park.htm |access-date=27 October 2024 |website=nps.gov}}</ref><gallery widths="130" perrow="5">
File:Saivodus striatus cartilage (NPS Photo).jpg|Jaw cartilage of ''[[Saivodus|Saivodus striatus]]'' found in Mammoth Cave
File:Mammoth Cave Chondrichthyes Braincase (NPS Photo).jpg|Fossilized braincase of a [[Chondrichthyes|cartilaginous fish]] found in Mammoth Cave
File:Mammoth Cave Troglocladodus Tooth (NPS Photo).jpg|Fossilized tooth of ''[[Troglocladodus|Troglocladodus trimblei]]'', known only from the limestones of Mammoth Cave
File:Petalodont Tooth (NPS Photo).jpg|Tooth-plate of a shark-like [[Petalodontiformes|petalodont]] fish
File:The fins spine of a Ctenacanth shark was discovered in a section of Mammoth Cave. Ctenacanth sharks are characterized by having (cd937c26-b714-4574-aed9-f73e960d5995).jpg|[[Dorsal fin]] spine of a [[Ctenacanthiformes|ctenacanth]] shark, exposed from the limestone of Mammoth Cave
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