TOURIST CAUSES WORLD CHANGING EVENT AFTER DROPPING CHEETOS INTO THE LARGEST CAVE IN NORTH AMERICA

It's a wise choice to go enjoy nature in the wilderness. Not so much leaving processed foods behind in fragile cavern settings. The workers at Carlsbad Caverns National Park warn that improper disposal of a tasty snack like Cheetos can destroy an entire ecosystem. An incomplete bag of cheesecake candies that a visitor left off the trail in early September 2024 set off a series of natural reactions that threw off the equilibrium of the local food chain. The park cautions on social media that such an error could have "world-changing" consequences within the cave. The staff explains the consequences of the abandoned snack food in the post. The Facebook post reminds us of the fragile interconnectedness of all beings, giving relatable examples from daily life, including the impact of being greeted by a smile. The processed corn created the ideal environment for microbial life and fungi to grow because of the cave's humidity. A transient food web is quickly formed by cave crickets, mites, spiders, and flies, which distribute the nutrients to the nearby caverns and formations. Mould grows larger on adjacent surfaces, produces fruit, withers, and emits an odour.

The enormous cavern where the Cheetos were dropped is only open to water. It's the biggest cave in North America, and people call it "The Big Room." Other foods and beverages could draw in unanticipated wildlife, which could lead to the mould growth this case showed. or result in other unanticipated events. Since "the cycle continues," as the Carlsbad Caverns National Park cautions in its post, it is difficult to predict when and where the ripples will go. The Carlsbad Caverns team has reminded the public of Leave No Trace (LNT) principles in other posts. This set of seven guidelines was born out of the desire to lessen the impact that tourists and nature enthusiasts make on the wild areas they visit. The third LNT principle is “Dispose of Waste Properly,” sometimes paraphrased as “Trash Your Trash.”