The research of microclimate in caves is recent in Brazil, and has been developed in a systematic basis only in the last three decades, mainly in show caves. The present study is aligned to a worldwide established research line, the classification of the patterns of air flow in dolines and caves. For this reason, a hydro-thermal monitoring was carried out during the winter, aiming to detail the dynamic of the air exchange between the microclimate in the surface, huge dolines with caves inside, in the municipality of São Desidério, in the State of Bahia. The field research was developed into two dolines with different sizes of caves in the inner part, to verify possible patterns, similarities and singularities. The results show that the dolines, and its respective caves, correspond to the model of air flow in caves named cold trap, keeping the temperature relatively cool and the air wetter inside in comparison to the warm and dry microclimate of the São Desidério region, even in the dry season. The conclusions point out the necessity of complementary researches in the summer, as well as considerations about the favorable potential of tourist use of the caves in the inner part of dolines in São Desidério, from the perspective of the speleoclimate.
Cave Atmosphere; Espeleoclimate; Microclimate; Climate monitoring
