Sima Martel (Sima Menor) is an enormous

sinkhole A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. The term is sometimes used to refer to doline, enclosed depressions that are locally also known as ''vrtače'' and shakeholes, and to openi ...

located on the summit of plateau of Sarisariñama

tepui A tepui , or tepuy (), is a table-top mountain or mesa found in South America, especially in Venezuela and western Guyana. The word tepui means "house of the gods" in the native tongue of the Pemon, the indigenous people who inhabit the Gran S ...

, in Bolívar State,

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. It is unusual due to several factors including its enormous size and depth, location on the top of the only forested tepui and having a patch of forest on its base. Named after speleologist Édouard-Alfred Martel.

History

Together with the neighbouring

Sima Humboldt Sima Humboldt (Sima Mayor) is an enormous sinkhole located on the summit of the plateau of Sarisariñama tepui in Bolívar State, Venezuela. It is unusual for several reasons, including its enormous size and depth, its location on the top of th ...

it was first spotted in 1961 by pilot Harry Gibson. It was first explored in 1971, and later was explored more thoroughly in 1976.(In Spanish) Miguel Lentino, Diana Esclasans. "Important Areas for the Conservation of Birds in Venezuela". In: Birdlife and Conservation International. Important Areas for the Conservation of Birds in the Tropical Andes: Priority Sites for the Maintenance of Biodiversity. ("Áreas Importantes Para La Conservación De Las Aves En Venezuela". In: BirdLife International y Conservation International. Áreas Importantes para la Conservación de las Aves en los Andes Tropicales: sitios prioritarios para la conservación de la biodiversidad.) Quito, Ecuador: BirdLife International (Serie de Conservación de BirdLife No. 14), S. 621-730, 2005. In total there are four caves on Sarisariñama.

References

{{Tepuis , Venezuela Quartzite caves Geography of Bolívar (state) Caves of Venezuela Sinkholes of South America