Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63

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Journal of African Earth Sciences

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Geology, geomorphology, geodiversity and geoconservation of the Sof

Omar Cave System, Southeastern Ethiopia
Asfawossen Asrat ⇑
School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The Sof Omar Cave System, a spectacular and extensive cave system in Southeastern Ethiopia represents a
Received 11 February 2015 maze of dry cave passages, which subsequently were crossed by a subterranean watercourse formed by
Received in revised form 3 April 2015 the Weib River, forming combined underground passages of a total length of 15.1 km, the longest and
Accepted 27 April 2015
most extensive in Ethiopia. The Sof Omar cave and subterranean river system developed on Jurassic lime-
Available online 7 May 2015
stone beds particularly on the Gebredarie Series (massive, crystalline limestone beds intercalated with
thin marl and mudstone beds). The cave system and the subterranean River developed along a generally
Keywords:
horizontal outline within a 20 m thick layer. The Sof Omar gorge is a wide but shallow doline, whose cen-
Cave system
Sof Omar
tral section is incised by the ancient surface route of the Weib River. Prominent half dolines opening
Ethiopia toward the sink and resurgence areas, as well as consistently inward dipping limestone beds at these
Geoconservation localities imply collapse phenomenon. Karstification triggered by rift-related uplifting and extension dur-
Cave geomorphology ing the mid-Miocene East African rifting, accompanied by extensive collapse along bedding planes likely
initiated the caving process. The rifted and collapsed chambers were later widened by slow but persistent
dissolution. The dry cave passages were formed earlier than the subterranean river course, though the
latter might have partly followed the pre-existing cave passages and enlarged them to form the current
subterranean river course. The Sof Omar caves are still at the heart of the cultural and religious life of the
local population, where the dry cave passages, domes, and chambers are considered as important reli-
gious and cultural locales. With its subterranean river, large chambers connected by narrow and long rift
passages, a unique and prominent sinkhole above the caves, wooded gorge teeming with numerous and
unique tropical plant and bird species, the Sof Omar Cave System and adjoining gorge has outstanding
scenic values. Apart from these naturally outstanding values, what makes the Sof Omar Cave System
unique and unsurpassed in the world is its cultural significance. The caves form part of the cultural
and religious life of the local population leading to the unique harmony between nature and culture.
The cave system and its adjoining forested gorge is a natural–cultural heritage site that requires an active
geoconservation.
Ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
There are over 100,000 square kilometers of carbonate rocks
exposed in Ethiopia (Fig. 1) but very little is known about the extent
of karst terrain. The total length of mapped limestone caves is less
than 40 km giving what must be one of the lowest ratios of cave
passage/limestone outcrop of any large country in the world
(Gunn et al., 2009). Extensive limestone beds are exposed in three
regions in Ethiopia: the Mekelle Outlier in the North (Tigray), the
Blue Nile Basin in central Ethiopia, and the Ogaden Basin (including
the Bale and Western Harrarghe areas where the longest cave in
⇑ Tel.: +251 91 1407553; fax: +251 11 1239462.
E-mail address: asfawossen.asrat@aau.edu.et
Ethiopia, Sof Omar, and the Mechara karst systems are located,
respectively, Fig. 1).
In Southeastern Ethiopia, a massive limestone terrain led to the
development of a karst system on Jurassic limestone beds, region-
ally known as the Antalo Limestone Unit (Bosellini et al., 1997;
Asrat, 2002), and locally subdivided into the Hammanlei
Formation, Uarandab series and Gabredare series (Assefa, 1988;
Bosellini et al., 1997). All the caves in the karst system have been
developed on the Gabredare series. The limestone unit, with a total
thickness of 500–800 m, consists of thin, fossiliferous limestone
beds intercalated with marl and sandy limestone beds at the top
(upper Gebredare series), and massive, crystalline limestone beds
intercalated with thin marl and mudstone beds at the bottom
(lower Gabredare series). The Antalo Limestone unit is

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2015.04.015
1464-343X/Ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
48 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63
Fig. 1. Regional geological and structural setting of Ethiopia showing major sedimentary terrains. Inset shows the regional structural setting of Northeast Africa.
conformably overlain by Jurassic shale (Agula Shale) with an esti-
mated thickness of 150 m, which comprises variegated shale, marl
and mudstone intercalated with thin beds of crystalline limestone
and, rarely, dolomite. Cretaceous sandstone (Ambaradam
Formation) conformably overlies the Agula Shale. The
Ambaradam Formation, with a total thickness of more than
300 m in the karst terrain, consists of white to pink, medium to
coarse-grained, immature, clastic sandstone beds intercalated with
silt, shale, mudstone, laterite beds and quartz conglomerates. The
Ambaradam Formation is exposed in isolated hills/ridges, which
form the higher reaches of the undulating plateau.
Both the Tertiary basalts and the Mesozoic succession are
affected by fractures and normal faults with general NE–SW orien-
tation parallel to the rift margin. These fractures are thought to be
related to the major rifting episode that formed the great East
African Rift system as their magnitude and frequency decrease in
the southeast direction away from the rift margin. Most of the cave
systems in the region developed along major NE–SW aligned rift
passages, parallel to the general orientation of the Main
Ethiopian Rift, suggesting karstification triggered by rift-related
extensional tectonics (Asrat et al., 2008).
The limestone terrain in Southeastern Ethiopia, which extends
from the foot of the Tertiary basalt ridge of Western Harrarghe to
the Somalia border in the east and southeast has the greatest cav-
ing potential. Limestone outcrops in this area are up to 800 m thick
locally (the sequence includes numerous intercalated marl and
mudstone layers), indicating a great potential for extensive karsti-
fication. On the other hand, the limestone outcrops in the north
(Tigrai) and central Ethiopia (Blue Nile gorge) are less promising
caving areas as the limestone beds are thin and intercalated with
extensive beds of shale, mudstone and marl (Asrat et al., 2008
and references therein).
In this contribution, a thorough description and analysis of the
geological, geomorphological and cultural settings of the Sof Omar
Cave System is given. The main objective of this contribution is to
document and analyze this geological and geomorphological her-
itage of paramount importance, which is crucial for the understand-
ing of an important period of Earth’s history. The caves are also
significant archives of archaeological, palaeoenvironmental and
palaeoclimatic histories (Asrat et al., 2008; Assefa et al., 2014).
Furthermore, these geoheritages in general and some selected
geosites in particular have to be conserved for their geoheritage
significance, hence their thorough recording and description is nec-
essary, as conducted in this work.
2. Methods
This contribution is based on numerous field expeditions to the
Sof Omar and many other cave systems in the country since 2003.
Detailed geological and geomorphological mapping of the Sof
Omar cave area has been conducted in order to characterize the geo
logic–geomorphological processes responsible for the karstification
of the area. The Sof Omar Cave System and the sub-terranean river
system have been thoroughly investigated with the objective of
exploring and surveying previously unknown chambers, and docu-
menting all geomorphological, geological and cultural elements of
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63 49

the already surveyed chambers. Furthermore, local people including The first published accounts of cave exploration in Ethiopia are
the custodian of the caves, who have been involved in the cultural those of Causer (1962) who visited Zayei Cave in Tigray, and
and religious activities conducted in the caves have been inter- Robson (1967) who described a visit by himself, Chris Clapham
viewed for accurate documentation of these elements, and for their and Ahmed Kabir to Sof Omar, the most famous cave in Ethiopia
views about the touristic and educational values of the caves. In and described by Waltham (2008) as ‘‘one of the world’s great
addition, a thorough survey of literature on cave exploration in underground rivers’’. It is an Islamic Holy Place and had been
Ethiopia has been conducted. known for many hundreds of years before Robson, Clapham and
Kabir Ahmed completed the passage from sink to rising. They also
published an excellent survey of about 8 km of passages. However,
3. Regional geological and geomorphological setting
systematic speleological research in Ethiopia began in 1972 when
the British Speleological Expedition to Ethiopia (BSEE) traveled
The sedimentary rock cover in Ethiopia accounts for more than
around the country and identified three main caving areas in the
40% of the surface area of the country (Fig. 1). The Paleozoic and
country: Tigrai, Harrarghe, and Bale, and completed the 15.1 km
Mesozoic sedimentary successions in Ethiopia lie over a
survey of the Sof Omar cave (Catlin, 1973). Their report (Catlin,
Precambrian crystalline basement of metamorphic–plutonic com-
1973) remains the fullest account of the country’s caves. In the
plex (Asrat et al., 2009). The Mesozoic sediments are exposed in
Tigrai area the BSEE recorded many cave entrances but none gave
the North (in Tigrai and the Danakil Alps), in central Ethiopia (within
access to caves of any length. The longest, at 330 m, is Zayei Cave
the Abay gorge and its major tributaries), and in Southeastern
(Causer, 1962). The members of BSEE explored and surveyed an
Ethiopia (Harrarghe, and the Ogaden plain).
extensive network of new passages in Sof Omar bringing its length
The Paleozoic era was characterized by extensive erosional pro-
to over 15 km, the longest in Ethiopia. They also explored a number
cesses (denudation), which reduced the mountains formed by the
of smaller caves in Bale, the longest of which was Nur Mohammed
crystalline basement into a peneplain. The peneplanation of the
(2.8 km). In Western Harrarghe, limestones crop out in a belt from
crystalline basement during the Upper Paleozoic was followed by
the southern margin of the Main Ethiopian Rift toward the Somali
limited continental fluviatile deposition of sandstones, glaciation
border. The BSEE (Catlin, 1973) and Morton (1976) explored a
and deposition of glacial tillites (Asrat, 2002 and references
number of vertical caves including Enkoftu Mohu, the deepest in
therein).
the country at 192 m (Brown et al., 1998).
An alternate sinking and uplifting of the landmass of the whole
Between 1974 and 1991, the country was almost inaccessible to
horn of Africa triggering transgression of the Indian Ocean from the
any outside explorers. Except a few visits and descriptions by
southeast to the northwest characterized the early Mesozoic.
casual explorers and visitors, no systematic cave exploration has
Deepening of the ocean during the middle Mesozoic and regression
been conducted. Since 1991, Sof Omar has subsequently been vis-
of the sea from the northwest to the southeast back to the Indian
ited by many tourists and by at least one team of cavers who took
Ocean during the late Mesozoic were the subsequent processes.
pictures for the 1995 Speleocalendar, before the next major caving
These successive processes resulted in the deposition of various
expedition to the region in December 1995 and February 1996 by
sediments (Beyth, 1971; Bosellini et al., 1997; Asrat, 2002): (i)
the University of Huddersfield Caving Club (Brown et al., 1998).
Adigrat Sandstone: fluviatile, gray to red, fine to coarse grained,
This included visits to the Negele area in the southwestern margin
well-sorted, friable, cross-bedded, and very mature sandstones
of the Ogaden Basin, where the accessible limestones proved to be
(quartz arenites) and siltstones which were deposited over pene-
argillaceous and thinly bedded with no obvious karst features or
plained crystalline basement; (ii) Antalo Succession:
caves and to Sof Omar for a classic tourist trip. However, their main
sub-continental and marine deposits including variegated shales,
discoveries were Achere and Aynage caves in the Mechara area of
marls, and clay intercalated with finely crystalline limestone and
the Western Harrarghe region and in November 1996, both Achere
thin beds of dolomite, gypsum (Agula Shale), and white (and rarely
(3830 m) and Aynage (3308 m) were extended making them the
black), finely crystalline to lithographic, well-bedded, fossiliferous,
second and third longest caves in Ethiopia and two other caves,
typically well-indurated limestones interbedded with yellow marl
Warthog Pot (40 m) and White Tree Cave (20 m) were explored.
and sandy limestone. The Antalo Limestone conformably overlies
Brown et al. (1998) reported the combined results of the two
the Adigrat Sandstone. The Antalo Succession was deposited near
Huddersfield expeditions while Gunn and Brown (1997, 1998) dis-
shore on a gently sloping ramp of the East African Craton during
cussed the speleogenesis in the area.
a second-order relative sea-level cycle (Oxfordian-Kimmerdgian;
Since 2003, a geologist (Asfawossen Asrat, author of this contri-
Bosellini et al., 1997); and (iii) Ambaradam Formation: white to
bution) from the School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University
pink, medium to coarse-grained, immature, clastic sandstone
and speleologists from CIRS, Ragussa, Italy explored the limestone
inter-bedded with silt, shale, mudstone, laterite beds and quartz
terrains of Tigray, the Blue Nile gorge and Southeastern Ethiopia
conglomerate lenses. This Formation unconformably overlies the
and discovered many cave entrances, mostly in the Mechara karst
Antalo Succession and forms steep cliffs at the base of messas
system (Baker et al., 2005; Ruggieri, 2006; Asrat et al., 2008). These
formed by Trap basalts.
include Eyefeyite-Garayati cave system and Rukiessa cave; the lat-
ter was surveyed to 1300 m. Our visits to the Mechara karst system
4. Brief history of cave exploration in Ethiopia since 2005 have resulted in the discovery of many more caves,
where detailed palaeoclimatic studies have been conducted
The first mention of limestone caves in Ethiopia was by (Asrat et al., 2007, 2008; Baker et al., 2007, 2010; Blyth et al.,
Donaldson Smith (1897) who visited the Sof Omar caves in 2007). The ten longest caves in Ethiopia are given in Table 1.
October 1894. He only mentioned the entrance to the cave and
apparently did not traverse it. Some other travelers and missions
who visited Sof Omar include E. Brumpet and Zeltner in 1901 5. The Sof Omar Cave System
(Du Bourg de Bozas, 1906) who collected some cave organisms,
the Italian mission to Ethiopia in 1912 (Citerni and Hoepli, 1913) 5.1. The Sof Omar area
who visited only some of the dry cave passages, N. Largajolli in
1937 (Consociazione Turistica Italiana, 1938), who attempted to The Sof Omar area is located in the semi-arid climatic zone of
explore the cave system. Ethiopia getting a total annual rainfall of 600 mm (National
50 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63

Table 1 to resurgence. The caves could be explored on foot if one is

Ten longest caves in Ethiopia. equipped with basic caving lights.
No. Cave Surveyed Location Discovered and Year(s)
length surveyed by of 5.2. The cave system
(m) survey
1 Sof Omar 15,100 Sof Omar, Eric Robson, 1966 The Sof Omar Cave System, named after the saintly Sheik Sof
Bale, SE Chris Clapham & Omar Ahmed, who took refuge here around early 11th century
Ethiopia Kabir Ahmed
British 1972
AD, represents a maze of dry cave passages which subsequently
Speleological were crossed by a subterranean water course formed by the
Expedition to Weib River, forming combined underground passages of a total
Ethiopia (BSEE) length of 15.1 km (Fig. 3). The subterranean Weib River leaves its
2 Achere 3830 Mechara, University of 1995/
surface course and sinks to a subterranean course at Ayew Maco
Western Huddersfield 1996
Harrarghe, Caving Club (sink UTM location: 0703817E; 0763587 N; 1190 m.a.s.l.) travers-
SE Ethiopia ing a total length of 1.5 km underground and resurges to the sur-
3 Aynage 3308 Mechara, University of 1995/ face at Holqa (resurgence UTM location: 0704493E; 0762828 N;
Western Huddersfield 1996 1175 m.a.s.l.). The adjoining dry cave passages, domes, and cham-
Harrarghe, Caving Club
bers at the Ayew Maco and Holqa localities have been important
SE Ethiopia
4 Nur 2800 Goro, Bale, BSEE 1972 Islamic shrines.
Mohammed SE Ethiopia The subterranean Weib River flows along a generally NW–SE
5 Rukiessa 1300 Mechara, Asfawossen 2003/ direction, with a few sharp turns along its course, prominently
Western Asrat and CIRS- 2005
about 300 m from the sink, and at the ‘‘Great Dome’’ about
Harrarghe, Ragussa
SE Ethiopia 500 m from the sink. The Weib River follows a generally flat course
6 Garayati 520 Mechara, Asfawossen 2003/ over sediment laden limestone beds bounded by generally vertical
Western Asrat and CIRS- 2005 walls and often flat but seldom arched ceilings with a maximum
Harrarghe, Ragussa width of 30 m and maximum height of 20 m. During low water
SE Ethiopia
levels, the river could be crossed on foot at eight fords connecting
7 Zayei 330 Hagere Dave Causer 1962
Selam, Tigrai, sand and boulder bars. At places, the river eddies around the foot of
N Ethiopia giant columns rising from floor to ceiling. About 300 m from the
8 Eye Feyite 320 Mechara, Asfawossen 2003/ Holqa resurgence, the river descends down a vertical cliff of about
Western Asrat and CIRS- 2005
5 m height forming the ‘‘Grand Rapids’’ where energetic falling of
Harrarghe, Ragussa
SE Ethiopia
the water over big limestone boulders perched over fractured lime-
9 Bedeno 250 Bedeno, W.H. Morton 1975 stone cliff creates roaring sounds echoing within the subterranean
Western and Addis Ababa halls. After the Grand Rapids, the river again follows a flat coarse
Harrarghe, University until the resurgence at Holqa. At few places, the river branches
SE Ethiopia Associates
from its main course into the adjoining cave passages. Evidences
10 Enkoftu 192 Bedeno, W.H. Morton 1975
Mohu (depth) Western and Addis Ababa of past high water levels are marked in the cave walls in the dry
Harrarghe, University cave passages, the highest level reaching nearly a meter above
SE Ethiopia Associates the current riverbed, and transported river sediments (coarse
basalt boulders) in the cave floors (Fig. 6), mostly close to the
resurgence at Holqa.
Meteorological Agency, 2012). The area has bimodal rainfall distri- Most of the dry cave passages have developed along a general
bution where nearly 85% of the rainfall occurs in two seasons: NW–SE direction. However, the rift passages assume N–S and E–
March to May and September to November. These two rainy sea- W orientations at places. The dry cave passages could be grouped
sons each receive nearly half of the total annual rainfall, while as the ‘‘Ayew Maco Series’’ close to the sink, the ‘‘Chamber of
the remaining six months are generally dry accounting for only Columns’’, adjacent to the subterranean river course between the
15% of the total annual rainfall. Minimum temperatures range sink and resurgence, the ‘‘Holqa Circle Line Series’’, close to the
between 19 and 21 °C while maximum temperatures range Holqa resurgence, and the ‘‘Abe Kurie’’ and ‘‘Alpha’’ Series down-
between 33 and 35 °C during the whole year. December and stream the Holqa resurgence.
January are the coldest months while March and September are The Ayew Maco Series is an interconnected series of cave pas-
the hottest months. sages which are collapsed chambers up to 10 m wide, and up to
The Sof Omar Cave System, one of the most spectacular and 10 m high, floored by boulders of limestone, connected by narrow
extensive underground Cave Systems in the world, is located along (less than 2 m wide) and low rift passages. The large chambers at
the Weib River catchment which flows southeast and drains to the places have big circular domes of up to 10 m diameter (e.g., domes
Genale River, joining it at the Ethiopia–Somalia border in the 1 and 2 in Fig. 3).
Southeastern Ethiopian lowlands, east of the Southeastern The ‘‘Chamber of Columns’’ is a large and wide chamber of more
Ethiopian highlands (Fig. 2). The small village of Sof Omar is than 50 m across with numerous, colossal limestone columns ris-
located right above the caves and access to the caves (Fig. 3) is ing from floor to ceiling dotting the chamber. The
from this village, after a short descent to the main tourist entrances fine-sediment-covered floor and the arched ceiling made the
at Ayew Maco (Fig. 4) and Holqa ends of the subterranean Weib ‘‘Chamber of Columns’’ a spectacular subterranean ‘‘castle’’.
River (Fig. 5). A gravel road that connects Robe and Ginir passes The ‘‘Holqa Circle Line Series’’ is the most extensive series of dry
over the caves. However, the dry cave passages could be accessed cave passages. Similar to the Ayew Maco Series, these cave pas-
through more than 40 entrances at the cliff sides. The main tourist sages are mostly collapsed chambers subsequently enlarged by
route in the cave largely follows the subterranean Weib River dissolution and connected by narrow rift passages. In addition to
course with frequent detours to the numerous chambers of the the main entrance above the resurgence, these series of caves could
dry cave system (Fig. 3). The River Weib has also to be crossed sev- be accessed by more than 20 low and narrow entrances, at cliff
eral times if one wants to traverse the whole cave system from sink sides perched over the dry valley. The most prominent chambers
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63 51

Fig. 2. Location and access maps of the Sof Omar caves: (A) the regional setting of the caves with respect to the drainage systems of SE Ethiopia and Somalia; a rectangle
bounded by broken lines is the map detailed in (B); (B) access routes from Addis Ababa to Sof Omar (red solid lines: asphalt roads; red broken lines: all weather gravel roads);
major towns and the regional geomorphological setting (solid brown lines are contour lines with contour interval of 1000 m) are shown. The Sof Omar caves can be accessed
from Addis Ababa along two main routes Addis Ababa – Asela – Robe (420 km) and Addis Ababa – Shashemene – Robe (450 km) asphalt roads. From Robe the caves can be
accessed along an all-weather gravel road, which connects Robe to Goro (45 km), Sof Omar (105 km) and Ginir (145 km). (For interpretation of the references to color in this
figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
52 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63
Fig. 3. The Sof Omar Cave System (survey by Robson and Clapham in 1966 (Robson, 1967) and by the British Speleological Expedition to Ethiopia (BSEE) in 1972 (Catlin,
1973), with new additional data from explorations conducted by A. Asrat in 2009 and 2012).
in this series are the ‘‘Grand Gallery’’, the entrance chamber at
Holqa which is a narrow, more than 50 m long descending corridor
bounded on either side by pink-colored limestone columns rising
from floor to ceiling (Fig. 7); and the ‘‘Great Hall’’ extending for
more than 100 m at right angle to the subterranean Weib River
(Fig. 8). This Great Hall, which is about 30 m wide and up to
10 m high is an extensive subterranean chamber floored by exten-
sive basalt boulders all the way down to its open end, possibly
indicating seasonal and former river flows along its floor. The
‘‘Balcony Chamber’’ with its curiously carved ceiling indicating dif-
ferential dissolution phenomenon (pyramids of dissolution), is also
located in the ‘‘Holqa Circle Line Series’’, adjacent to the ‘‘Grand
Rapids’’. In addition, there are a few dissolutional karst features
(‘‘molars’’ and broken columns) along narrow rifted chambers
(Fig. 9).
The Abe Kurie and Alpha series are interconnected narrow rift
passages, which are seldom visited by tourists and the locals.
These are difficult to access except by experienced cavers and
could serve as interesting speleological caves for interested parties
and future studies.
The Sof Omar caves, apart from their natural beauty have a
great cultural significance as they are prominently placed in the
cultural life of the local population. The caves have been feared
and revered by the local population and have been serving as
sacred Islamic shrines since their presumed habitation by Sheik
Sof Omar almost a thousand years ago. All the accessible chambers
of the dry cave system have been associated to some cultural activ-
ities. The isolated and broken limestone column close to the sink of
the Weib River is named after the daughter of Sheik Sof Omar,
Ayew (‘‘Ayew Maco’’ refers to ‘‘named Ayew’’ in the local language;
Fig. 10), while the great chamber below a great dome close to the
Ayew Maco entrance, is believed by the locals to be the ‘‘Mosque of
Usuma Abdi’’ (‘‘Usuma Abdi’’ being the son of Sheik Sof Omar). This
chamber is ceilinged by a circular dome (Dome 1 in Fig. 3; Fig. 10)
giving the chamber a high-ceilinged mosque appearance, showing
the fact that the cultural and religious belief was possibly influ-
enced by the natural geomorphic setting. A small, triangular (about
10 m by 10 m by 5 m), low ceilinged (about 1.5 m high), collapsed
chamber at the far end of the ‘‘Ayew Maco Series’’ is believed by
the locals to be the ‘‘Prayer Chamber of Sof Omar and associates’’.
In this bedding plane collapse chamber (Fig. 11), four extensive
limestone blocks collapsed from the ceiling and currently on the
floor are believed to be the preferred prayer seats of Sheik
Hussien (teacher of Sof Omar), Sheik Sof Omar, Ayew (Sof Omar’s
daughter) and Shebel Kassim (a cleric and associate of Sof Omar),
and this chamber occupies a special place in the cultural life of
the local population to which a guided tour is mandatory for any
visitor of the caves. Some 50 m further to the interior, a circular
collapsed chamber with fine-sediment and numerous limestone
blocks strewn over the floor is considered to be ‘‘Galma Sof
Omar’’ (‘‘Meeting Hall’’; Fig. 11), where Sheik Sof Omar was
believed to preside over meetings. Similarly all the other accessible
chambers and domes as well as columns are assigned to one or
another type of cultural activity or manifestation, indicating the
strong association of the cave system by the local population to
their belief and cultural system.
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63 53

Moreover, the special cultural significance given to the cave sys-

tem as a sacred place of worship helped to preserve the indigenous
forested environment of the area well.

5.3. Geological and geomorphological setting

The Sof Omar Cave System and the subterranean river system
developed on Jurassic limestone beds, particularly on the
Gabredare Series. The limestone unit, with a total exposed thick-
ness of less than 100 m in the vicinity of the caves (Fig. 12) consists
of thin, fossiliferous limestone beds intercalated with abundantly
fossiliferous (bivalves, brachiopods and gastropods) marl, and
sandy limestone beds at the top (upper Gebredare Series), and
massive, crystalline limestone beds intercalated with thin marl
and mudstone beds at the bottom (lower Gabredare Series)
(Fig. 13). The limestone beds are usually very fine and lithographic,
and rarely contain fossils. At least two types of limestone units
have been identified: biodetritic limestone with rare dolomites,
containing foraminifera and echinoderm detrital matrix and calcite
clasts joined by entirely crystallized cement (sparite); and detrital
limestone with fine micritic calcite clasts cemented by micritic
martix.
Cretaceous Sandstone (Ambaradam Formation) conformably
overlies the limestone unit. In the vicinity of the caves, the sand-
stone beds are very thin (a total exposed thickness of about
20 m) and consist of white to pink, medium to coarse-grained,
immature, clastic sandstone intercalated with silt, shale,

Fig. 4. (a) The Sof Omar village seen from the NE toward the southwest; (b) the
Sof Omar Cave System lies below the village, whose sink is at the Ayew Maco, in
the gorge at the foreground of the top photo; (c) and (d) closer views of the Ayew
Maco sink. The River Weib follows a flat course when it enters the subterranean
Fig. 5. The Holqa resurgence of the Weib River; (a) the River resurges at this end
system, and cut through relatively massive crystalline limestone beds to form
with a relatively steeper slope compared to its flat sink; (b) once the river emerges
vertical walls of more than 10 m high with spectacular beauty towering above the
on the surface it again assumes its flat course to join the dry valley after a few tens
river.
of meters downstream among a thick bush.
54 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63

could be considered in terms of inter-related geological and geo-

morphological phenomena, which seem to be uniquely influenced
by a combination of structural uplift, extension, bedding plane col-
lapse, dissolutional processes, and subterranean river incision.
Uplifting related to the East African Rifting during the Miocene
might have led to the development of underground rift passages,
which later were enlarged to form the dry cave chambers.
Karstification triggered by rift-related extension accompanied by
extensive collapse along bedding planes is the likely reason for ini-
tiating the caving process. The rifted and collapsed chambers were
later widened by slow but persistent dissolution. The dry cave pas-
sages must have been formed earlier than the subterranean river
course, though the latter might have partly followed the
pre-existing cave passages and enlarged them to form the current
subterranean river course. The orientations of the rift passages
(some orientations include the following: N0°E, N110°E, N30°E,
N120°E, N130°E, N100°E, N120°E), which define many sets, most
of which are oblique to the general subterranean river course, sug-
gest their different origin. In addition, numerous entrances located
at the cliff sides to the dry cave system strongly suggest a different
origin of this network of dry cave passages to the subterranean
river.
Seen over a large scale, the whole Sof Omar gorge is an exten-
sive and wide but shallow depression, whose central section is cur-
rently incised by the Weib River gorge. This phenomenon is further
evidenced by the prominent collapse features at the Ayew Maco
sink and the Holqa resurgence areas, which are marked by promi-
nent half dolines opening toward the respective gorges

Fig. 6. Evidences of the complex route of the Weib River; (a) past high water levels
successively marked on the cave walls within the currently dry cave passages, the
highest level reaching nearly a meter above the current riverbed; and (b) about a
meter thick bed of semi-consolidated basalt boulders in a dry cave passage a few
meters above the current level of the subterranean river course.

mudstone, laterite beds and quartz conglomerates. The

Ambaradam Formation is exposed on cliff sides above the lime-
stone beds and the weathered laterite beds give this unit its dis-
tinct red color. The sandstone unit is well exposed across the
gorge on the way to Ginir.
The sedimentary successions are overlain by a thin layer (only
about 20 m total exposed thickness in the vicinity of the caves)
of strongly weathered and fractured Oligocene basalt. The basalt
is generally aphyric with slightly porphyritic varieties, highly
vesicular and partly amygdaloidal with quartz infillings. The basalt
layer forms the flat terrain above the Sof Omar Cave System, where
the Sof Omar village is located.
The Sof Omar area is characterized by a wide, flat terrain in the
southwest truncated by the Weib River flowing from northwest to
southeast within a narrow, deep gorge. The gorge is bounded by
about 100 m high vertical cliffs in the southwest, which expose a
succession of basalt, sandstone and limestone layers. In the north-
east, about 50 m high vertical cliffs of limestone beds, which gently
rise to the sandstone beds, bound the gorge. The Sof Omar Cave
System and the subterranean river developed along a generally
horizontal outline within the altitude range of 1180–1200 m.a.s.l.
The dry river bed, which supposedly was the ancient surface route
followed by the Weib River before it cuts through the limestone to
form its subterranean course, runs parallel and almost at the same
horizon to the subterranean course.

5.4. Geomorphic processes
The geomorphic processes responsible for the formation of the
Sof Omar Cave System and the associated subterranean course
Fig. 7. The Grand Gallery (the main tourist entrance at Holqa) is a narrow, long and
descending corridor bounded on either side by pink-colored limestone columns
rising for about 10 m from floor to ceiling forming an arched top, with a spectacular
view toward the interior (a) and toward the exterior (b). (For interpretation of the
references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of
this article.)
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63 55

the water table to a lower level exposing the previously formed

cavities to percolating water in the vadose zone. Finally, the stream
occupying the earlier formed passages enlarges its course by ero-
sion or corrosion. The surface stream sunk underground below
its course in successive upstream stages. The stream also sunk to
successively lower levels as the water table drops, leaving a system
of superimposed dry passages.
This karstic cave system was later affected by the subterranean
river course, which developed horizontally from sink to resur-
gence. Though some amount of solutional activity must have been
involved originally, the main subterranean river course developed
almost in a straight line with no evidence of solutionally enlarged
joints. It is more likely that the subterranean course was formed
along a pre-existing weakness, possibly a more soluble limestone
stratum, originally attacked along a prominent bedding plane,
gradually enlarged by the actual corrosive action of the river. The
current subterranean river passage is the result of a young, highly
active stream, which has cut and eroded its way through limestone
without any solutional activity (Robson, 1967; Monod and Morton,
1972). The main subterranean river course might have later

Fig. 8. The Great Hall, which extends for more than 100 m at right angle to the
subterranean Weib River, is an extensive subterranean chamber (a) floored by
extensive basalt boulders all the way down to its open end (b), possibly indicating
seasonal and former river flows along its floor.

downstream (Fig. 12). The systematically and consistently inward

dipping limestone beds at these areas confirm this collapse phe-
nomenon (Fig. 14).
The development of the subterranean river course might have
been a more complicated process. The drainage system indicates
the River Weib abandoning its former meandering surface route
(now represented by the dry valley) to cut a new more direct sub-
terranean course through the limestone beds at the southwestern
bank of the gorge. The presence of old, semi-consolidated river sed-
iments (sorted pebbles forming a bed; Fig. 14) along the dry valley
support this hypothesis, though the current level of the dry valley
is a few meters higher than the level of the River Weib at its cur-
rent sink to the subterranean course. This shows a more compli-
cated process than simple abandoning of the old valley. However,
it should be noted that there is a strong possibility for the Weib
River to have been flowing at a higher altitude than it is today
before it started carving through the limestone beds. Extensive col-
luvium beds made up of limestone and sandstone blocks deposited
over the old river sediments also suggest a subsequent rising of the
level of the dry valley by colluvial deposition.
The absence of any dripstones (stalagmites or flowstones)
within the caves suggests the existence of an extensive, relatively
dry karstic cave system before the development of the whole sub-
terranean river course. The presence of abundant solutional cavi-
ties (e.g., Fig. 15) at cave passages below the abandoned river
system at Holqa indicates the development of the karstic cave sys-
tem at the Holqa Circle Line Series vertically following normal
karstic processes: chambers formed due to water circulating in
Fig. 9. The ceiling of the ‘‘Balcony Chamber’’ is curiously carved (a) indicating
the saturated zone below the water table dissolving the limestone differential dissolution phenomenon; (b) combined ‘‘molar’’ and broken columns
along rifted joints and bedding planes, followed by the receding of indicating dissolution along a narrow rifted chamber.
56 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63

5.5.1. Surface hydrological and associated landforms

The River Weib, which starts from the foot of the southeastern
highlands to the west of Sof Omar drains the Genale River further
to the south. The Weib River upstream the sink and downstream
the resurgence winds down a narrow and steep, forested gorge,
leaving in between the dry valley. The area is generally character-
ized by erosional landforms (cliffs and gorges) rather than deposi-
tional landforms. There are numerous dry valleys connecting to the
main river gorge. However, all the tributaries are generally dry.
Some evidences of depositional (colluvial and alluvial) features
are observed in the old dry valley where some colluviums of lime-
stone, sandstone and basalt boulders are deposited by gravity
action over old, semi-consolidated pebbles and conglomerates pre-
sumably deposited by the River Weib when it was flowing along
the now abandoned meandering valley.

5.5.2. Depressions, sinkholes and dolines

The Sof Omar area is characterized by a slightly depressed ter-
rain truncated by the Weib River gorge. However, the whole Sof
Omar area from sink to resurgence of the Weib River could be con-
sidered as a wide but shallow collapse doline. The cliffs above the
sink and resurgence of the River Weib are half dolines (sinkholes
with sagging features), which likely define older, well-developed
sinkholes, later partly destroyed when the River Weib gorge was
fully developed.
The Korema sinkhole/doline (Figs. 12 and 13) is the single most
spectacular surface manifestation of the more extensive karst

Fig. 10. (a) ‘‘Ayew Maco’’, an isolated, broken, about 4 m high limestone column
close to the sink of the Weib River, named after the daughter of Sheik Sof Omar,
‘‘Ayew’’. The locals believe that this broken column of limestone ‘‘is Ayew’’; (b) a big
chamber ceilinged by a circular dome of about 3 m diameter, a few meters from the
entrance at Ayew Maco is considered to be the ‘‘Mosque of Usuma Abdi’’ (‘‘Usuma
Abdi’’ was the son of Sheik Sof Omar).

connected to the karstic cave system at the Holqa end. It should,

however, be noted that abundant beds of semi-consolidated basalt
boulders at higher levels within the karstic caves above the current
level of the subterranean river course, might call for a more com-
plicated drainage history.
Evidently, the meteorological situation is manifested in the cur-
rent surface and groundwater regime of the Sof Omar area. Apart
from the Weib River whose source is in the highlands to the west,
which are generally wetter with more than 1000 mm annual rain-
fall, the local surface drainage is generally dry except seasonal
flows during the rainy seasons. The groundwater regime is equally
weak with no single spring identified in the whole area explored in
May–June (the end of the first rainy season). The water table is cur-
rently below the level of the subterranean river course and any
current solutional activity could be attributed to local seepage
from the river itself. However, minor seasonal seepage of meteoric
water to the vadose zone mostly through vertical joints occurs in
few places above the subterranean system during the rainy sea-
sons. In general, the Sof Omar Cave System has been a generally
dry cave system with no prominent solutional activity after its for-
mation, with no speleothem identified. This calls for a very rapid
cave development when the climate was much wetter and an
immediate lowering of the water table below the subterranean
river course, which remained low throughout the past.
Fig. 11. (a) ‘‘Prayer Chamber of Sof Omar and Associates’’: this small, about 5 m
across, triangular low ceilinged bedding plane, collapsed chamber contains four
5.5. Landform geodiversity extensive limestone blocks collapsed from the ceiling and currently on the floor
which are believed to be the prayer seats of Sheik Hussien (left block), Sheik Sof
Omar (small block at the back), Ayew (right block) and Shebel Kassim (big block in
The Sof Omar area is characterized by diverse landform features the foreground); (b) ‘‘Galma Sof Omar’’ or ‘‘Meeting Hall’’: a circular collapsed
including the following: chamber with fine-sediment and numerous limestone blocks strewn over the floor.
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63 57

Fig. 12. Geological and Geomorphological map of the Sof Omar area. The surface and sub-surface drainage systems as well as the locations of sink and resurgence, and
prominent karst features are marked on the map. Geological cross-sections along lines A–A0 and B–B0 are also given.

feature underneath. It is a very prominent doline with almost per-
fectly circular outline and a diameter of 150 m. It exposes a com-
plete section of the stratigraphy in the Sof Omar area on a 30 m
thick vertical cliff. The bottom of this orifice is covered by a thick
pile (about 3 m is exposed) of collapsed limestone, sandstone and
basalt boulders. The vertical wall starts with horizontally bedded
and massive lower limestone layers (about 12 m thick in total)
intercalated with a mudstone layer (1 m thick), which in turn is
overlain by thinner limestone layers (about 6 m thick in total).
The limestone unit is overlain by about 6 m thick succession of
the Cretaceous sandstone unit, which exposes an intercalation of
sandstone, sandy limestone, marl and shale. A thin (about 4 m
thick) basalt layer forms a veneer above the sedimentary
succession.
The Korema sinkhole is located immediately north of the
‘‘Grand Rapids’’ and there are no enlarged chambers immediately
beneath it. It marks the non-karstified area between the
‘‘Chamber of Columns’’ and the ‘‘Holqa Circle Line Series’’. It might
58 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63

Fig. 13. The geological setting of the Sof Omar area; (a) the road from Robe to Ginir winds up the Sof Omar dry gorge traversing across the limestone beds at the bottom,
overlain by thin sandstone and basalt layers (view toward the NE from the Sof Omar village); (b) a closer view shows a complete stratigraphic section at the Korema sinkhole:
thinly bedded limestone layers (yellowish) overlain by thin beds of sandstone (reddish) and basalt (dark) layers; (c) and (d) closer views of the Limestone Unit: the thinly
bedded, cave forming lithographic and crystalline limestone (c), which is usually intercalated with highly fossiliferous marl and shale unit (d). (For interpretation of the
references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

have collapsed into an already formed karst caves previously con-
necting these two series but now blocked by the collapsed mate-
rial. However, there are no any obvious openings from both the
collapsed bottom and the vertical walls to the caves beneath.
5.5.3. Surface karst
Surface karst features are rare in the Sof Omar area due to the
basalt and sandstone covers. However, where the limestone is
exposed to the surface at the sides of the gorges, there are some rill
karrens and solutional cavities starting from bedding plane joints
(Fig. 16). Considering the generally dry condition of the area and
very thin soil cover, surficial as well as epigenetic karst features
are unlikely to be present.
5.5.4. Subterranean landforms
The Sof Omar Cave System is an underground palace of spectac-
ular beauty. Its unique feature is related to the immense size and
simple but extraordinarily beautiful shape of its numerous cham-
bers, galleries and passages. White limestone walls reflecting on
the deep and gently flowing Weib River give the Sof Omar cave
its unique beauty (Fig. 17). The dry cave passages have generally
flat floors on horizontal limestone beds covered by brown sedi-
ments, white (sometimes pinkish) limestone walls and generally
flat limestone ceilings. However, at places, variously sized, col-
lapsed limestone blocks cover floors of chambers and galleries with
arched or domed ceilings, supported by immense columns.
5.6. Cave contents
The Sof Omar Cave System is conspicuously dry and generally
devoid of any secondary carbonate growths (speleothems). Some
of the chambers in the dry cave system contain fine cave sedi-
ments, and course boulders of basalt, which are consolidated at
places. The fine clay sediments are relatively thin, and cracked at
places (Fig. 18) indicating an open cave system where dry air circu-
lates within the chambers. The subterranean river has also depos-
ited fine clays at the chambers close to the riverbanks. The coarse
boulders of basalt on the other hand are localized to few chambers
close to the sink and the resurgence.
In addition to the sediments, the dry cave chambers contain
numerous debris of wood, in places whole trunks of enormous
trees (including stems of Juniperus procera). The Weib River from
farther west on the southeastern highlands definitely must have
carried the Junieprus. In some chambers far from the main subter-
ranean river course, tree trunks are observed precariously balanced
on big boulders without falling, probably suggesting that these
chambers were not flooded in the recent past.
Similarly, guano deposits in the Sof Omar Cave System are rare.
Those present are usually found in the interior chambers, which
are generally wide and extensive. The guano deposits are all
located above the current level of the subterranean river course
and are generally dry and fine, except when the rising level of
the subterranean river seasonally humidifies them. In general,
the guano deposits are very much localized and attract very few
cave organisms due to their dryness. No fossils and cave painting
have been identified in any part of the cave system.
5.7. Biodiversity
The Sof Omar dry valley is a thickly forested and wooded gorge
with both big trees and thick shrubs generally considered to be C
ommiphora–Kirkira–Acacia woodland and bushland. The most
common tree species include: green palmes, Boswellia papyrifera
(with its characteristic brilliant white stems and frankincense
smell), Acacia Bussei and few other Acacia sp., Balanites, Euphorbia
baleensis, Ficus, Commiphora (mostly Commiphora monoica), and
Haplocoelum gallaense. There are also numerous shrubs and scrubs
the most common of which include: Ziziphus, Sericocomopsis
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63 59

involved in mixed agriculture where they farm the land above

the caves to grow maize, and rear animals (goats, cattle and
camels). There is also a permanent settlement of a few families
at the dry valley of the Weib River close to the Ayew Maco sink.
The Holqa end of the gorge is devoid of any human occupation.
There is no any kind of permanent human occupation in the inte-
rior of the caves at both the Ayew Maco and Holqa ends.

5.8.2. Cultural values

The Sof Omar caves are still at the heart of the cultural and reli-
gious life of the local population, though the caves have been long
abandoned from serving as permanent cultural and religious cen-
ters, as they used to be during the time of Sof Omar and his follow-
ers as it is strongly believed and passionately narrated by the local
population. The caves are considered as an important part of the
life of the local population, and their beliefs and traditions should
be considered as an integral part of the peoples’ identity. This belief
and tradition gives the Sof Omar caves their mysterious beauty in
addition to their spectacular natural setting, adding more asset to
tourism potential. Currently, only the first few chambers close to
the Ayew Maco entrance serve for ritual practices. There are thrice
per year ritual/religious ceremonies held in these chambers and in
the stone enclosure just outside the caves. People from far and near
congregate to celebrate the religious life of Sheik Sof Omar, Ayew
Maco and the followers of Sheik Sof Omar with the belief that these
ritual practices have healing powers. Understanding and respect-
ing the importance of the cave for the religious, cultural, and social

Fig. 14. Evidences for a shallow but extensive depression in the Sof Omar Cave
System: (a) systematically and consistently inward dipping limestone beds at gorge
sides; (b) semi-consolidated river sediments (sorted pebbles forming a bed) along
the dry valley also indicate the abandoning of the old dry valley by the Weib River
to cut its way across the limestone beds to subsequently form the new
subterranean course.

pallida, and numerous Sanseviera and Pyrenacantha malvifolia

(‘‘Monkey Chair’’ with its obese, white base).
Various wildlife has been observed in the Sof Omar area, the
most common being antelope, dikdik and lesser kudu, Anubis
baboon (Papio anubis) and vervet monkey (Cercopithecus aethiops),
and leopard tortoise (Stigmochelys pardalis). Numerous bird and
insect species are also very common in the Sof Omar area.
The cave interiors on the other hand are biologically poor due to
the low humidity. No true troglobites (cave dwelling animals) are
observed neither reported from the Sof Omar caves. Only a few
insects including beetles and woodlice, cave (camel) cricket
(Rhaphidophoridae), and some termite colonies are observed in
some of the chambers. The single most common life in the caves
is a colony of bats, which roost in the cave interiors (Fig. 19). The
most common species of bats present in the Sof Omar caves is
Otomops martiensseni (Large-eared Free-tailed Bat). Other reported
species include Cardioderma cor (the African False Vampire Bat)
and Rhinolophus blasii (the Horseshoe Bat).

5.8. Human occupation

5.8.1. Residence
The Sof Omar village located above the caves is a permanent
settlement of some tens of families with a mosque, an elementary
school, and a relatively big weekly market. It is located at the cross
roads between the Robe-Ginir and the Robe-Megalo-Somali region Fig. 15. (a) Solutionally enlarged vertical joints; and (b) active solutional cavity at
routes and is regularly visited by traders from Somali region and the Holqa resurgence zone support a karstic development due to the lowering of the
the highlanders. These families apart from trading are also water table in this zone.
60 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63

the road access from Ginir or Robe for passing tourists, could
enhance this community-based tourism in the Sof Omar caves.

5.8.4. Pollution and hazard

The Sof Omar caves and the adjoining gorge remains largely
pristine and natural as the forests within the gorges are tradition-
ally protected by the local population from cutting and deforesta-
tion as they are believed to be sacred. The tourist flow to the caves
is also minimal which helps keep the caves to remain largely nat-
ural. There are no any immediate pollution problems and hazards
to the caves and surrounding. However, the caves and the sur-
rounding are increasingly subjected to some environmental

Fig. 16. Manifestations of surface karst: (a) a limestone block affected by

interconnected rill karren and (b) solutional cavities formed starting from bedding
plane discontinuity on a limestone bed exposed close to the surface.

ceremonies of the local population is necessary and any develop-

ment of the caves should also allow these to continue and flourish.
The cultural beliefs of the local population are the main reasons for
the respect they have to the caves, actively ensuring their
protection.

5.8.3. Recreation and tourism

Though the Sof Omar caves have long been identified as having
a big potential for tourism by both national, regional and local
authorities, the tourist flow (both local and foreign) has been min-
imal. This could be related to various reasons including difficulty of
access and absence of any accommodation facilities at site. There
have been some trials by the regional authorities to develop the
caves for tourism, which included the installation of permanent
lighting system in the caves and installing diesel generators to
power them. These installations have been completed a few years
back but are still waiting idle. A guesthouse has also been built at
the old dry valley close to the Ayew Maco entrance though it
remains closed. Currently, any tourism activity to the caves is man-
aged by the local community, particularly by the traditional chief
of the local community (‘‘Aba Gada’’) from whom permission must Fig. 17. Typical subterranean landforms of the Sof Omar caves: (a) the immense
be sought to enter the caves, with a nominal fee. The usual tourist ‘‘Great Hall’’ close to the resurgence of the Weib River at Holqa with its white and
route within the caves is followed for interested visitors, but the slightly carved limestone walls and boulder-covered floor, opening to the outside at
local ‘‘guides’’ usually insist on leading visitors to the cultural/reli- an oblique angle to the resurgence; (b) the Grand Gallery at Holqa with its typical
huge columns and arched ceilings with sunlight beautifully reflecting on the walls
gious route from Ayew Maco entrance toward the ‘‘Sof Omar when viewed toward the exterior; and (c) the immense size of the Grand Gallery
Prayer Chamber’’. Organizing the local population to develop and the narrow rifted passage along the floor, the arched walls and ceiling giving
stay-home residences on site for staying tourists, and improving the chamber a ‘‘tube’’ appearance.
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63
Fig. 18. Sediments and wood debris in the dry cave chambers; (a) and (b) fine clay
sediments forming laminations, which are cracked at the top; (c) and (d) debris of
tree branches mixed with fine sediments, and pieces of Juniperus tree trunks.
pressures. The most significant ones include: (i) the main
Robe-Ginir road traverses across the gorge of Sof Omar and passes
right on top and across the cave system; passing of trucks along
61
Fig. 19. A bat colony roosting on the ceiling of a dry cave chamber.
this road poses an immediate risk of collapse of the subterranean
system due to increased load and vibration; (ii) the Sof Omar vil-
lage is expanding slowly but steadily. The village is located above
the caves and any kind of expansion to the east might pose a seri-
ous threat to the caves; (iii) agricultural activities (tilling and water
harvesting) in the fields above the caves and close to the Korema
sinkhole increase the residence time of water by reducing surface
runoff, and aggravate the rate of rapid water infiltration along ver-
tical joints possibly leading to collapse of some subterranean
chambers; and (iv) land degradation due to increased agricultural
activity following clearing of bushes and even cutting of trees
illicitly.
5.8.5. Research and education
The Sof Omar Cave System has always fascinated cave research-
ers, travelers, naturalists and speleologists alike. Since Donaldson
Smith (1897) who visited the Sof Omar caves in October 1894
and first mentioned them in print, numerous visitors and research-
ers alike have visited the caves.
Though the Sof Omar caves are dry and the subsequent absence
of speleothems made them unsuitable for palaeoclimatic and
palaeoenvironmental reconstruction studies, these caves and the
subterranean river course provide an interesting array of scientific
challenges on the geomorphic processes responsible for their for-
mation. Numerous scientific questions (including what the genetic
relationship between the dry cave passages and the subterranean
course could be? Whether a simple water table lowering was
responsible for the formation of the dry cave system? Why spe-
leothems are absent in the caves? When the subterranean cave
system developed relative to the dry cave system?) could be
answered on cave development by studying the cave system sys-
tematically and thoroughly. Moreover, students of both natural
and social sciences from the nearby universities, or anywhere in
the world could benefit from studying and visiting the cave sys-
tems and understanding their natural and cultural significance.
5.9. Conditions and integrity
5.9.1. Damage
The Sof Omar Cave System remains intact and there are no obvi-
ous signs of damage to the cave system. However, a collapsed
chamber at the Ayew Maco series was identified during our last
survey to contain recent collapsed material, which increased the
overall size of the chamber from previous surveys. This could be
related to a steady natural phenomenon or possibly triggered by
human activity. In any case, this calls for a continuous monitoring
of the caves for any possible damage.
62 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63
5.9.2. Modification
The natural setting of the Sof Omar Cave System remains intact
without any permanent modification by any human action.
However, the recent installation of generator powered permanent
lighting system and infrastructure has modified the natural setting
of the Sof Omar caves. Apart from affecting the natural setting, this
permanent lighting system requires expensive continuous mainte-
nance. This could be easily replaced by cheap and effective fixed
aids at the more difficult sections of the tourist route to make
the route more accessible.
5.9.3. Management
The Sof Omar Cave System, recognized as important tourist des-
tination, is public (government) property and the Regional Culture
and Tourism Office in principle administers it. However, the custo-
dian of the caves is the local community, particularly the local
community chief ‘‘Aba Gada Aba Jabr’’ (the descendant of the
Sheik Ahmed Kabir, who was the first local person to traverse
the whole subterranean course with G. E. Robson and C. Clapham
in 1966), who gives the permission to enter and visit the caves.
In effect, the local community manages the caves, with due recog-
nition of the fact that the caves are public (government) property.
5.9.4. Monitoring and environmental control
So far, apart from regular visits by officials and experts from the
National and Regional Culture and Tourism Offices to the Sof Omar
caves and surrounding, no systematic monitoring and environ-
mental control works have been done. In short, no official monitor-
ing and environmental control system targeting the Sof Omar Cave
System exists.
6. Geoconservation of the Sof Omar Cave System
The Sof Omar Cave System, which is currently ranked as the
306th longest cave system in the world with a total surveyed
length of 15.1 km, is considered to be among the 28 amazing caves
of the world in the authoritative work of Waltham (2008) who
described the Sof Omar Cave System as ‘‘one of the world’s great
underground rivers’’. The Sof Omar Cave System and its adjoining
wooded gorge is an ideal setting for geoconservation leading to
geopark development or a combined natural–cultural world her-
itage site. The Sof Omar Cave System provides an ideal geologi
cal–geomorphological setting for understanding complex cave
and karst forming processes and provides a unique setting for fur-
thering our understanding on karst systems of the world. The caves
are also of spectacular beauty as they provide a unique setting
where an active subterranean river system exists side by side with
an older, generally inactive relict karst system and this provides
both a spectacular natural beauty attractive to tourists and a
unique scientific challenge to researchers. The Cave System also
provides a wide variety of both surface and subterranean karst
landforms. In short, as a natural setting, the Sof Omar Cave
System, the adjoining old, abandoned meandering river gorge
and the immediate upstream and downstream sections of the
active Weib River valley should be conserved.
Furthermore, unlike many other caves in the world with compar-
ative natural setting and beauty as well as uniqueness, the Sof Omar
Cave System provides a unique cultural setting where the caves play
a significant role in the cultural life of the local community. In fact,
the local population for this very reason actively protects the caves.
The cultural landscape of the Sof Omar area cannot be considered
without the caves. This provides an important reason for protecting
these caves under all related conventions including the ‘‘World
Heritage Convention’’.
The Cave System and the adjoining gorge are also home to a
wide variety of faunal and floral biodiversity, which are relatively
well protected by the local population as the sites are considered
to be sacred. This natural–cultural harmony created by the local
population gives the Sof Omar caves their unique protection, which
should be enhanced by protecting them as world heritages or
geoheritages.
It is here proposed to especially protect the zone incorporating
all the known ‘‘Sof Omar Cave System’’ and the surface manifesta-
tions including the Korema Sinkhole and other dolines, the surface
karst features, as well as the forested gorge right up to the cliffs of
the exposed limestone units. This zone lies immediately east of the
Sof Omar village and is currently uninhabited except few families
residing close to the entrance to the caves at Ayew Maco, and are
an active part of the cultural activities conducted at the site. This
zone could be buffered by another geoconservation zone incorpo-
rating the limestone unit within the vicinity of the River Weib
gorge as well as the wooded hillsides of the gorge as these are con-
sidered to be potential sites for undiscovered cave passages and
karst landforms.
7. Conclusion and recommendations
The Sof Omar Cave System shares many of the geomorphological
as well as geological features of many spectacular karst systems in
the world, in addition to its unique subterranean river system: it
features an underground river system associated to karst develop-
ment demonstrating more than 10 Million years (since the middle
Miocene when the karst development started) of Earth’s evolution-
ary history. The subterranean Weib River is a unique example of
erosional landform development within a karst system. The Sof
Omar Cave System also provides outstanding scientific opportuni-
ties to study the interplay between dissolutional and erosional pro-
cesses in the development of extensive cave systems, thereby
providing an ample opportunity to understand important stages
in the development of the Earth. With its interesting subterranean
river, large chambers connected by narrow and long rift passages, a
unique and prominent sinkhole above the caves, forested and
wooded gorge teeming with numerous and unique tropical plant
and bird species, the Sof Omar Cave System and adjoining gorge
has outstanding scenic values. Apart from these naturally outstand-
ing values, what makes the Sof Omar Cave System unique and
unsurpassed in the world is its cultural significance. The caves form
part of the cultural and religious life of the local population leading
to the unique harmony between nature and culture. In short, the Sof
Omar Cave System is a unique geoheritage, which warrants imme-
diate geoconservation.
In order to help protect the caves from damage, it is strongly
recommended to (i) legally protect the unique geoconservation
zones of the cave system; (ii) put in place a permanent manage-
ment as well as monitoring and environmental control system of
the caves; (iii) create awareness among the local population on
protection of the area from land degradation; (iv) control the
expansion of the Sof Omar village toward the east and southeast
(toward the caves underneath); and (v) relocate the Robe – Ginir
road to the north or south of the current location in the sector
where it crosses the Weib River gorge in order to avoid its direct
passage over the cave system, especially when major road is
planned and constructed.
Acknowledgements
The Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural
Heritage provided financial support, while Addis Ababa University
provided logistical support. The Oromia Region Culture and
 A. Asrat / Journal of African Earth Sciences 108 (2015) 47–63
Tourism Bureau facilitated fieldwork to the Sof Omar caves.
Cherinet Tilahun provided the basis for the investigation of the Sof
Omar caves for their ‘‘heritage’’ values. Aba Gada Aba Jabr was
instrumental in getting access to the caves. All are dully acknowl-
edged. The valuable comments of two reviewers helped to improve
the original manuscript.
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