Tham Pha Thai - LA0001
18.605745,99.896494
Location
This is a very well known show cave on the edge of the Tham Pha Thai National Park, 2 km west of the H1, 67 km north-east of Lampang and 17 km south-west of Ngao. The cave entrance is a 10 min walk up a flight of steps from the car park and visitor information centre. From the car park a set of good steps leads up to the large collapse entrance.
Description
After Tham Chiang Dao in Chiang Mai province this is the most renowned cave in northern Thailand. A vast archway at the entrance frames a gilded Buddha and a white stalagmite 20 m high called "the stone sunshade". The 350 m long main passage is spacious, well decorated and electrically lit and ends at a chamber which has a couple of skylights. There are side passages, but these have not been pushed to a conclusion as they contain over 5% CO2 (maximum reading of 6.5%) On a visit by the SMCC in December 2003 the CO2 concentration reached 3.5% on the main show cave path during our visit. From the large collapse at the main entrance a couple of other smaller caves can accessed. These smaller caves are included by the French in their total length for Tham Pha Thai. Several galleries have been partially filled with a rhyolitic tuff giving a potassium/argon date of 9.36 +0.47 million years, suggesting great antiquity for the cave.
Topographie
DEHARVENG, LOUIS; GOUZE, ALAIN (1983)
Fauna
Tylopus perarmatus Hoffman, 1973 (Arthropoda, Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Paradoxosomatidae) (Likhitrakarn et al. 2010) Troglodillo emarginatus Jackson, 1937 (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Malacostraca, Isopoda, Oniscidea, Armadillidae) û type locality (Jackson 1937) Acherontiella thai Thibaud, 1990 (Arthropoda, Entognatha, Poduromorpha, Hypogastruroidea, Hypogastruridae) û type locality (Thibaud 1990) Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) stantoni Newstead, 1914 (Arthropoda, Insecta, Diptera, Psychodidae) (Apiwathnasorn et al. 1993) Orthriophis taeniurus (Cope 1861) (Chordata, Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae) (unpublished record) Taphozous theobaldi Dobson, 1872 (Chordata, Mammalia, Chiroptera, Emballonuridae) (Roguin 1988) Aselliseus stoliczkanus Dobson, 1871 (Chordata, Mammalia, Chiroptera, Hipposideridae) (Yenbutra and Felton 1986) Hipposideros larvatus (Horsfield, 1823) (Chordata, Mammalia, Chiroptera, Hipposideridae) (Kusch 1982) Myotis hasseltii (Temminck, 1840) (Chordata, Mammalia, Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) (Kusch 1982)
Hydrology and Geology
The fossil galleries contain a rhyolytic tuff which has been dated to 9.36 million years.
Documents
[Topo] Tham Pha Thai 30/04/2019Bibliography 03/12/2019
- +APIWATHNASORN, C.; SUCHARIT, S.; SURATHIN, K.; DEESIN, T. (1993) "Anthropohilic and Zoophilic Phlebotomine Sand Flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) from Thailand" Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association Vol. 9 No. 2 pp135-137 +CLARAC, A.; PAGAU-CLARAC, H. (1985) "Thailande: Guide Touristique" DK Book House, Bangkok ISBN 974-2104-174 508pp +COGGAN, MARJORIE; DUNKLEY, JOHN ROBERT; ANDERSON, NEIL (EDS.) (1999) "Tham Sanuk: The Lighter Side Of Caving In Thailand" Canberra, 76pp +COND+, BRUNO (1994a) "Palpigrades cavernicoles et endogÚs de Tha´lande et de CÚlÞbes (2e note)" Revue Suisse Zoologie Vol. 101 No. 1 p233-263 +CUMMINGS, JOE (1999) "Thailand" 8th edition, Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd, Hawthorn, Victoria ISBN 0-86442-636-4 1032pp +DEHARVENG, LOUIS (1987) "Cave Collembola of South-East Asia" Korean Journal of Systematic Zoology Vol. 3 No. 2 pp165-174 +Deharveng, Louis; Gouze, Alain (1981) "La Thailande" Speleo Club de L'Aude Lo Bramavenc No. 2 June 1980 pp56-58 +DEHARVENG, LOUIS; GOUZE, ALAIN (1983) "ExpÚdition en Thailande - Rapport Speleologique" Privately circulated report +DEHARVENG, LOUIS ET AL. (1986) "ExpÚdition Tha´-Maros 85" Association PyrÚnÚenne de SplÚologie, Toulouse ISBN 2-906273-00-7 Deharveng & Gouze (1983) +DEHARVENG, LOUIS; LECLERC, PHILIPPE (1989) "Recherches sur les Faunes Cavernicoles d'Asie du Sud-est" MÚmoires de BiospÚologie Vol. 16 No. 43 pp91-110 +Dhammadharo, Lee (1994) "The autobiography of Phra Ajaan Lee" Metta Forest Monastery, 140pp +DUNKLEY, JOHN ROBERT (1995) "The Caves of Thailand" Speleological Research Council, Sydney ISBN 0-9589253-9-9 +ELLIS, MARTIN (2004a) "SAM in Siam" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Newsletter Vol. 40 No. 6 pp140-146 +ELLIS, MARTIN (2005) "Some Caves in Thailand Part 1" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Journal Series 11 No. 7 pp294-321 +Ellis, Martin; Laumanns, Michael (2017) "Thailand" in Laumanns, Michael; Price, Liz (eds.) (2017) "Atlas of the Great Caves and Karst of Southeast Asia: Part 2 Myanmar - Vietnam" second edition, Berliner Hohlenkundliche Berichte Band 67 pp241-292 +JACKSON, H. G. (1937) "A new terrestrial isopod from Siam collected by H.R.H. the Prince Leopold of Belgium in the Far East in the year 1932" Bulletin du Musee Royal d'Histoire Naturelle de Belgique Vol. 13 No. 1 pp1-4 +KUENTAG, CHUMPHON (1983) "Limestones of Thailand" Department of Mineral Resources, Bangkok 27pp +Kusch, Heinrich (1975) "H÷hlen in Laos, Nord- und Westthailand - H÷hlengebiete S³dostasiens III" Die Hohle Vol. 26 No. 4 pp113-123 +Kusch, Heinrich (1982a) "Ergebnisse spelaologischer forschungen in Thailand (Stand 1978)" Die Hohle Vol. 33 No. 2 pp59-69 +Kusch, Heinrich (1982b) "Die lõngsten und tiefsten H÷hlen S³dostasiens (Stand 1981)" Die Hohle Vol. 33 No. 4b pp142-148 +KWON, DO HEON; TAITI, STEFANO (1993) "Terrestial Isopoda (Crustacea) from southern China, Macau and Hong Kong" Stuttgarter Beitrõge zur Naturkund, Serie A (Biologiae) No. 490 pp1-83 +Lalleman, Jean-Michel (1986) "Balade en sous-sol au Pays de Sourire" Speleo Club de l"Aude Lo Bramavenc No. 10 pp6-10 +LIKHITRAKARN, NATDANAI; GOLOVATCH, SERHEI I.; PRATEEPASEN, RUJIPORN; PANHA, SOMSAK (2010) "Review of the genus Tylopus Jeekel, 1968, with Descriptions of Five New Species from Thailand (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Paradoxosomatidae)" ZooKeys 72 pp23-68 +MUNIER, CHRISTOPHE (1998) "Sacred Rocks and Buddhist Caves in Thailand" White Lotus Co. Ltd, Bangkok ISBN 974-8434-19-2 266pp +NATIONAL PARK OFFICE (2006) "National Parks in Thailand" National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, Bangkok 280pp ***Pumijumnong, Nathsuda (2017) ôíÊ+Ó-+È--+Úʺ+Ðí-+Ê¥¦Ïñ+Êí+Ò¦íÊ+-¦Ï+Ðí+ý-ÈÞºßæ+Ú-- ©++-¬ÊÁÈ-ЦñÃ+ñÞÊßíÞíÊ+-¦Ï+Ðí+ý++ðÓ+ÀÂÚË [Capacity building for cave conservation]ö Powerpoint slide pack, 12 December 2017, 72p +ROGUIN, LOUIS DE (1988) "ExpÚditions Thai-Maros 85 et Thai 87 - Mammiferes" Expeditions de l'APS en Asie du Sud-est: Travaux Scientifiques û 1. Association PyrÚnÚenne de SpÚlÚologie, Toulouse ISBN 2-906273-03-1 pp47-52 +SIDISUNTHORN, PINDAR; GARDNER, SIMON; SMART, DEAN (2006) "Caves of Northern Thailand" River Books, Thailand, ISBN 9749863135 +STEPHENS, HAROLD (2000) "Return to Adventure Southast Asia: With Amazing Thailand as the Hub" Wolfenden, Miranda, California ISBN 09642521-6-3 ppxiv + 227 +SUWANNABUN (1981) +TAITI, STEFANO; GRUBER, GERTRUD A. (2008) "Cave-dwelling Terrestrial Isopods from Southern China (Crustacea, Isopoda, Oniscidae), with Descriptions of Four New Species" Research in South China Karst. Memorie del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Verone 2nd Series. Monografie Naturalistichie 3-2008 pp101-123 +THIBAUD, JEAN-MARC (1990) "RÚvision du genre Acherontiella Absolon, 1913 (Insecta, Collembola)" Bulletin du MusÚum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris Vol. 12 No. 2 pp401-414 ***Various (2016a) "[Guide to environmental quality standards for caves]" Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning, Bangkok, ISBN 978-616-316-322-6, 106p ***Various (2016b) "[Climate change preparedness and prevention program. The potential for ecological and environmental conservation based on cave type]" Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning, Bangkok, ISBN 978-616-316-321-9 842p +VETTERLI, ALBIN (1993) "H÷hlen in Thailand, Reisenotizen" H÷hlenpost No. 92 pp3-9 +VOGT, NILS B. (2013) "Temple Caves & Grottoes in Thailand: A Picture-Guide Book" Booksmango, Bangkok ISBN 978-616-222-160-6 214pp +YENBUTRA, SONGSAKDI; FELTON, HEINZ (1986) "Bat Species and Their Distribution in Thailand According to the Collections in TISTR and SMF" in FELTON, HEINZ (ED.) "Contributions to the Knowledge of the Bats of Thailand" Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg, Frankfurt Vol. 87 pp9-45
History
1923 The cave was found by animal hunters during the survey for the H1. 1926 Rama VII visited it and inscribed his initials near the entrance. 1932-02-24 H.R.H. the Prince Leopold of Belgium visited the cave and collected the type series (all females) of the woodlouse Troglodillo emarginatus Jackson, 1937. 1978-04-05 H. Kusch & I. Staber 1983 L. Deharveng & A. Gouze - surveyed cave 2003-12-12 SMCC M. Ellis, I. Hollis
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12.9 | Cave LA0089 | ||
| 13.3 | Tham Pratu Pha [LA0041] | ||
| 14.2 | Cave LA0088 | ||
| 14.5 | Cave LA0090 | ||
| 17.8 | Lom Phu Khieo [LA0091] | ||
| 21.2 | Cliff Cave 1 - LA0035 | ||
| 21.2 | Cliff Cave 2 - LA0042 | ||
| 21.5 | Doi Pha Kan Rock Shelter [LA0095] | ||
| 23.3 | Ban Tha Si Rock Shelter [LA0092] |