Batatotalena Kuruwita limestone cave stratigraphy: Pleistocene fossil bone preservation?

The exceptional preservation of delicate Pleistocene human skeletal remains and extinct fauna inside Batatotalena Cave (Kuruwita) is driven by karst micro-environmental chemistry. Drip-waters percolating through upper crystalline marble and calc-gneiss strata are saturated with dissolved calcium bicarbonate. As water evaporates inside the shelter, it precipitates travertine and calcite crusts over floor sediments. Furthermore, dense anthropogenic middens composed of millions of land snail shells (Acavus) neutralize acidic soil pore-waters. This creates an alkaline pH environment (7.5-8.2) that prevents collagen leaching and bone decalcification.