29 US-Mexico Exchange on Cave and Karst Science and Conservation

This session welcomes submissions in fields related with cave and karst sciences applied in Mexico, with a special interest in showcasing present or past US-Mexico binational collaborations, inter- and multidisciplinary studies and community outreach projects.

Thursday, 23 April 2026
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
LMH, Meeting Room

Hypogenetic origin of Xoxafi Cave, Hidalgo, México: based on morphological and mineralogical characteristics.

Paper number: 29-9
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 4:05 PM – 4:25 PM

Authors

Abstract

Central Mexico is characterised by a large volcanic province, known as the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB), that cuts a sequence of Cretaceous carbonate rocks. The Xoxafi Cave is located at the boundary of TMBV with the El Doctor platform rocks, characterised by massive reef carbonate beds of El Doctor Fm. (Berriasian-Cenomanian) which are overlain by the syntectonic turbidites of Soyatal Formation. (Turonian-Coniacian). These formations are folded with NE-SW shortening and intersected by N-S and E-W normal faults supporting the emplacement of volcanic rocks of the Pachuca Group (Miocene), generating important epithermal ore deposits of Ag, Au, and Fe in the region. The LiDAR 3D scanning and the geomorphological characterisation indicate that the main conduits of Xoxafi Cave are constituted by typical upward-convex, ceiling cupolas, rising wall channels and feeders, rising chains of cupolas, and outlets that connect with dome pits and upper galleries related to the hydrothermal fluid circulation. The host rock is characterised by fossiliferous zones with spongiform karstification, and the compact limestone zones are characterised by calcite and Fe-oxide veins.

Paleomagnetic analysis may indicate whether the subsequent stage of Xoxafi Cave´s evolution involved a dry period generating precipitation of carbonate speleothems that were later covered by sub-aqueous calcite crystals, which could indicate a re-ascent of warm water. The final stage relates to the main entrance that corresponds to the collapse of the doline that allowed the rainwater, volcanic ash and sediments to fill the last 25 m of the cave. Some conduits are affected by biological karstification, generating ceiling cupolas probably related to bat colony activity.

With this work, we confirm that the central Mexico region serves as a laboratory for the study of hypogenic fossil caves, opening new avenues for karst studies in Mexico.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 3

doi: 10.1130/abs/2026CD-410938

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