Inside the ancient Chinese forest hiding in a giant sinkhole – and experts think unknown species could be there too

A NEW giant sinkhole has been uncovered in China where experts believe unknown species could dwell.

The depth of the hidden world is more than double the height of the statue of liberty, at 630feet (192metres), according to local media which first reported on the discovery.

An aerial photo of a Tiankeng, or giant karst sinkhole

The sinkhole is located in Leye-Fengshan Global Geopark, south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

But inside, the sinkhole’s interior is 1,004feet (306metres) long and 492feet (150metres) wide, according to Zhang Yuanhai, a senior engineer with the Institute of Karst Geology.

Rex

Yuanhai told state-owned news agency Xinhua that the site had “a well-preserved primitive forest at the bottom” and three caves inside it.

Meanwhile, Chen Lixin, the leader of the cave expedition team, said the dense undergrowth on the sinkhole floor was as high as a person’s shoulders.

Lixin’s expedition team abseiled down more than 100 meters and “trekked several hours to reach the pit’s bottom” to discover that the ancient trees growing at the bottom reached nearly 40 meters high.

Sinkholes can often provide an oasis for life.

Especially ones as large as this.

“I wouldn’t be surprised to know that there are species found in these caves that have never been reported or described by science until now,” added Lixin. 

While not involved in the project, George Veni, executive director of the New Mexico-based National Cave and Karst Research Institute told the Washington Post that the newly explored sinkhole is almost definitely home to small animals, such as insects, that are currently unknown to scientists.

China’s landscape is prone to dramatic sinkholes.

The phenomenon is known locally as ‘tiankeng’, or ‘heavenly pits’.

Leye Fengshan UNESCO Global Geopark, where the sinkhole was found, is located in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Southwestern China.

The latest discovery brings the number of sinkholes in Leye County to 30, according to Xinhua.

Dozens of sinkholes in Northwest China’s Shaanxi province, as well as a cluster of interconnected sinkholes in Guangxi, according to China Daily, have previously been discovered by Lixin’s team.

The Leye-Fengshan Geopark, where the sinkhole is located, was added to the UNESCO’s Global Geopark List in 2010

The geopark, where the giant sinkhole was discovered, contains multiple large subterranean rivers, natural bridges and extensive cave systems

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