Aninei Mountains: The Ponor-Plopa Cave System

Abstract

Ponor-Plopa is a tiered karst system developed along a small underground stream that includes five sumps. While part of the system was known and visited for a long time, the sections located beyond the sumps were only explored in the last decades. These sections became known for their rich paleontological deposit, including remains of cave bear and other large carnivores and herbivores that have been accumulated within some passages c. 50-30 ka ago. The cave is internationally known for yielding the oldest remains of a modern human (c. 40 ka) that has shown proof of admixture with Neandertalians.