The Waitomo Caves are located just outside the town of Waitomo on the North Island of New Zealand. “Wai” is the Maori word for water and “tomo” means hole or opening. The Waitomo Caves system, which includes Ruakuri Cave and Aranui Cave, is a popular destination for visitors from all over the world to come and explore, with its magical blue light.
Waitomo was first explored in 1887 by Maori chief Tane Tinorau and a British surveyor, Fred Mace. The Maori had long known of the existence of caves, but the underground caverns had never been extensively explored until Fred and Tane went to investigate. They made a raft from flax stalks and, armed with candles and torches, entered the cave. As they entered, they were amazed by the glowworms that emanated from the ceiling. As they went deeper into the caves towards an embankment, they were even more amazed by the dense and dense layers of limestone within the cave. Excited by the discovery of such a majestic cave, they returned several times to continue exploring. On one of their solo trips, Chief Tane discovered the upper entrance to the cave, which is also the main entrance to the cave today. In 1889, Tane Tinorau opened the cave to tourists. Since 1906, the New Zealand government has taken over ownership of the cave, Tane Tinorau and his wife receive a percentage of the cave's revenue and participate in its management and development.
Over the years, under the influence of water flow, Waitomo Caves has formed millions of stalactites and stalagmites, creating an extremely rich ecosystem in the cave. When going deeper into the cave, visitors will be amazed by the majestic cave system and this is also the habitat of hundreds of other species of creatures.
Firefly larvae hang from the cave ceiling like strings of sparkling crystals.
Located more than 45 meters underground with a unique cave structure and shape due to the impact of nature over time, Waitomo Cave is home to the Arachnocampa luminosa glowworm, a species of glowworm that only lives in New Zealand. The larvae of this glowworm species hang from the ceiling of the cave like sparkling crystal strings. Adult glowworms use bioluminescence produced from their tails to attract mates as well as "trick" other insects into their traps.
The magical light of Arachnocampa luminosa fireflies shimmers along the Waitomo River, as if you could reach out and touch the galaxy with thousands of twinkling stars, as if a fantasy world in the blockbuster movie "Avatar" is appearing before your eyes, that magical light suddenly lights up, then suddenly goes out with the sound in the cave. The boat slowly drifts, you will be captivated by the rows of light hanging naturally like soft silk strips, extending to the end of the cave like tiny lights decorating the majestic stalactites. That magical light blends with the clear, dripping sound of water drops, creating a magical scene on the ground.
To preserve the "ground galaxy" at Waitomo Cave, New Zealand scientists must constantly monitor and analyze air quality, humidity, temperature and CO2 levels.2in the caves are very careful to capture the changes of Waitomo, based on that adjust the number of visitors to the caves each day. These strict regulations are set out to protect and help humanity not lose such a wonderful, magical natural treasure.
