Tlacolula de Matamoros
The caves and rock shelters vary in size and what they contain. Many contain paintings and other forms of graphic representation. Contents include ceramics and stone tools. The corn materials show similarities to the first vestiges of the domestication of wheat and rye in the Middle East. One of the deepest caves is called the Cueva de la Paloma. The caves have been studied since the 1960s, especially the Cueva de Guilá Naquitz (white stone in Zapotec), which has some of the best evidence for the domestication of corn and squash, which dates back more than 10,000 years. Other caves, such as those near Yagual and Mitla confirm findings at Guilá Naquitz and show human occupation to about 8000 years BCE the sites also show similarities to the Head Smashed and Buffalo Jump Complex sites in Canada. Many more smaller caves with similar artifacts are thought to exist in the area.
Chevé Cave
Chevé Cave was discovered in the mid-1980s by Bill Farr and Carol Vesely. Since then it has been pushed to the depth of , making it the second deepest cave in the Americas. The cave system has the greatest proven depth potential in the world as proven by a dye trace from its main entrance to the resurgence 2547 meters lower. The current terminus of the main Chevé system is a large breakdown pile reached after diving through two sumps. It is just over 9 kilometers from the entrance, making it currently one of the most remote underground locations on earth. Due to the logistical difficulties of continuing exploration from this point, current expeditions are focusing on finding mid-way entrances that might provide a quicker route into the middle Chevé system.