August 20, 2007
Bowling
Green, Ky. - “Caves: A Fragile Wilderness,” a new traveling exhibit from the Smithsonian Institute, opens Sept. 22 and will run through Nov. 24 in Western Kentucky University’s Kentucky Library & Museum.
This exhibit features 39 color photographs, taken by 23 National Speleological Society (NSS) members who have explored and photographed caves from Alaska to Malaysia. The photos are presented in four sections: “Entrances,” “Passages,” “Formations,” and “Life.”
Whether underground, underwater or within ice, caves have intrigued explorers since the days of early man. Adventurers have entered these hidden chambers seeking the thrill of exploring an unknown world and finding water-sculpted stone, crystalline formations and unusual wildlife. Contemporary cavers often combine spelunking skills with photographic expertise to bring these extraordinary places to light.
Caves provide essential habitats for unique plants and animals, some of which spend their entire lives in a dark, underground world. Caves are found in every state in the United States, as well as in most countries in the world. They come in all sizes and shapes and degrees of decoration. Some are wet and some are dry and no two are the same.
The Kentucky Library & Museum is open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 1-4 p.m. Sunday. Sunday admission is always half price.
For information on the exhibit, contact Donna Parker, Exhibit Curator, Kentucky Library & Museum, at (270) 745-6083, or Cindy Troutman, Marketing Coordinator, University Libraries, at (270) 745-4502.
More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
For information, contact Donna Parker at (270) 745-6083 or Cindy Troutman at (270) 745-4502.
-WKU-
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