Pendulite

Club Stalactite - War-Cup Stalactite

A kind of stalactite which has been partly submerged in a cave pool and the submerged part was covered with dog-tooth spar to give the appearance of a drumstick.

Typical for this kind of stalactites is that they become thicker to the bottom. Some look like baseball bats, which lead to the name War-Cup Stalactite, others like toilet brushes, a common joke among cavers. They are formed by the growth of calcite crystals under water. The stalactites form when the water is low, but when the water level rises they are submerged, and the growth of calcite starts. Different water levels create different thickness, but obviously the calcite is thickest at the bottom, because this part is submerged the longest.

A speleothem which forms at the rims of rimstone pools is called Pool Fingers. Recent research revealed that it forms with the help of microorganisms. Pendulites have a similar structure and so it is likely that their formation is also connected to microorganisms, but there is so far no proof. This question is currently under research.

• Examples
• Herbstlabyrinth-Adventhöhle-System
• Lechuguilla Cave

• See also
• Search Google for "Pendulite"
• Lexicon of Cave and Karst Terminology: pendulite (visited: 19-FEB-2022)
• Glossary of Karst and Cave Terms: pendulite (visited: 19-FEB-2022)
• This is a "pendulite" (visited: 19-FEB-2022)