Tilkiler Cave, a.k.a. Tilkiler Sinkhole, ( a.k.a. ''Tilkiler Düdeni'') is a

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

located in

Manavgat Manavgat is a city in the district of the Antalya Province in Turkey, from the city of Antalya. The Manavgat River has a waterfall near the city. The population of the district is 242,490 (2020 census). Geography Between the Taurus Mountains ...

district of

Antalya la, Attalensis grc, Ἀτταλειώτης , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 07xxx , area_code = (+90) 242 , registration_plate = 07 , blank_name = Licence plate ...

in southern Turkey. It is named after the nearby village Tilkiler. It is situated east of Tilkiler village and about northwest of Oymapınar Dam at above sea level. The distance from Manavgat is about . Tilkiler Cave was discovered in 1976 during the preparatory construction works at Oymapınar Dam while excavating an injection gallery. The horizontal developed cave has a length of and is deep. It is the country's third longest one. The cave was constituted in the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

conglomerate rock formation. It is also partly formed in

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

. These characteristics make it valuable for scientific research. The ponds inside the cave are at different elevations. Water level varies between summer and winter ranging between . The cave floods in springtime. A few kilometers from the entrance, there is a hall, where the ground is completely covered with sand. In 1977, French

speleologist Speleology is the scientific study of caves and other karst features, as well as their make-up, structure, physical properties, history, life forms, and the processes by which they form ( speleogenesis) and change over time (speleomorphology) ...

s built four small sand castles there that gave the hall the name "Hall of Castles". It was observed 27 years later that the sand castles were still intact.

References

Caves of Turkey Caves of Antalya Province Manavgat District Wild caves {{Antalya-geo-stub