Kona Shamsham Cave

Kona Shamsham Cave is one of the caves of Kurdistan Province. It lies 165 km from the city of Sanandaj, northeast of Marivan County, near the village of Taraq Tappeh in the Chehel Cheshmeh Mountain area. The cave has formed inside the limestone of the region's mountains and has three entrances, one of which has been blocked by a collapse. According to the Iran Caves website, the cave is 455 meters long with a depth of zero, which makes it a suitable home for bats.

The history of Kona Shamsham Cave is unknown, but its visual features suggest that it is very old. One notable point about this tourist attraction is that the cave has remained pristine to this day. In the areas of Bukan, Urmia, Sanandaj, northeastern Iraqi Kurdistan and parts of Marivan, "kona" means a cave, and "shamsham" means bat. Kona Shamsham therefore means a hollow in which bats live. The cave was named Kona Shamsham because of the presence of various bat species in it. According to experts, beautiful and very rare species of primitive bats live in Kona Shamsham Cave, such as mouse-tailed, horseshoe and brown bats, and throughout history the cave has been home to these species.