Cenote

A cenote (English: /sɪˈnoʊti/ or /sɛˈnoʊteɪ/; Latin American Spanish: [seˈnote]) is a natural pit, or sinkhole, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater. The term originated on the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, where cenotes were commonly used for water supplies by the ancient Maya, and occasionally for sacrificial offerings. The term derives from a word used by the lowland Yucatec Maya—tsʼonoʼot—to refer to any location with accessible groundwater.

In Mexico the Yucatán Peninsula alone has an estimated 10,000 cenotes, water-filled sinkholes naturally formed by the collapse of limestone, located across the peninsula. Some of these cenotes are at risk from the construction of the new tourist Maya Train.

Cenotes are common geological forms in low-altitude regions, particularly on islands, coastlines, and platforms with young post-Paleozoic limestone with little soil development. The term cenote, originally used only to describe the features in Yucatán, has since been applied to similar karst features in other countries such as Cuba, Australia, and the United States.