Formas kársticas comunes de los cenotes del Estado de Quintana Roo (México)

Abstract

The present paper studies several of the cenotes located in the state of Quintana Roo (Yucatan peninsula), term used by Mexicans to explain the subterranean cavities which are permanently flooded and connected to the surface. Frequently, cenotes are connected to each other through a series of subterranean galleries and passageways that often end up into the ocean. The abundance of karst forms found on the inside of these galleries, make this area a natural museum where many of the processes that have occurred and keep occurring on its inside may be observed and interpreted. All the features showed on these cenotes in Quintana Roo, make up an extraordinary scenario for the practice of cave diving, helping to understand the complex process of karst formation on a region where fresh continental and salt water is often found mixed.