A group of nine American cavers has recently completed the second of a planned multi-season exploration of Mangaia’s cave systems. Exploration was undertaken with research permission from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Aronga Mana of Mangaia and individual landowners. The exploration project was supported by a small grant from the American National Speleological Society of the USA but was primarily self-funded.
According to team leaders Ben Hutchins and Emily Davis, 10 caves in three districts (Veitatei, Ivirua, and Tava’enga) were completely or partially surveyed during the team’s first 2023 visit to Mangaia. Cave lengths ranged from 17 metres to 2.5 kilometres (Tuatini cave, Veitatei), and a total of 6.
1 kilometres of survey was accomplished. While some cave passages were easy to walk through, the team also had to navigate low crawls, deep mud and water, and vertical pits and fissures, often with specialised equipment. A further 16 caves were explored in the second (2024) season, with an extra 8 kilometres of passage surveyed.
Caver Andrea Futrell in Ana Tautua, Tamarua (Photo – Shane Fryer, 2024)/ 24092009 Caves are now documented in each of the island’s six puna. Of these, Tautua, in Tamarua, is currently the longest, at nearly 4 kilometres. Tautua was described by one team member as “the most beautiful cave” she’d seen in over 40 years of caving around the world.
Altogether the team estimates there may be hundreds of caves yet to be explored in what o.