This is a shield-like depositional feature in a karst cave, and it gets its name from its appearance. It usually has a hollow circular shape and attaches to the cave roof or wall with a diameter between 10 cm and 4–5 m and a thickness of 2 to 10 cm. When water from cracks under hydrostatic pressure flows along the rock layers of the cave shield, the shield grows outwards continuously, forming an incremental circular pattern. When the water supply is adequate, a shield weight can form along the edge of the shield. A large shield weight is called a cave tent, and it may look like a round mosquito net. Cave shields can form individually or be connected in an array. There are four connected cave shields in the Chuanshan Cave, Guilin (Fig. 19).
Landscape of a 4 m-high white cave shield in Xueyu Cave, Chongqing
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(2020). Cave Shield Landscape. In: Chen, A., Ng, Y., Zhang, E., Tian, M. (eds) Dictionary of Geotourism. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2538-0_256
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