Strange cave formation found in South Dakota gets laughs: ‘It looks like a Tater Tot’

Just two weeks after an Indiana woman made headlines by finding a crystal resembling fried chicken, the National Park Service has unveiled an equally strange formation in a remote South Dakota cave system.

In this case, it looks like a crispy, delicious Tater Tot.

Jewel Cave National Monument posted a photo of the formation July 11, where amused commenters immediately dubbed it the “Tater Tot crystal” due to its uncanny resemblance to America’s beloved cylindrical fried potato snack.

“The majority of Jewel Cave (at least what has been mapped so far!) is a relatively dry cave, but there are some rooms in the cave that have enough dripping water to create some fascinating ... cave formations,” the park posted.

“One of these is called a ‘bottle brush,’ formed when the cave flooded long ago and minerals were deposited on the end of a stalactite.”

The post has been shared more than 350 times, with commenters likening this wondrous act of nature to a “Tater Tot hanging from a gravy drip.” Some suggested naming it the “cavertot” or “the forbidden Tater Tot.”

“I don’t care what anyone says: They’re lying if they said they saw a bottle brush and not a Tater Tot,” Ian Wilson wrote on Facebook.

“I always thought Tater Tots came from potatoes, who knew they grew naturally in caves!” Chris Risley wrote on Facebook.

“Dude, ...thought it was a Sonic (Drive-in) ad,” Alex Johnson posted.

News of the formation comes two weeks after Amelia Rude of Bloomington, Indiana, made international news with photos of a “red calcite cluster” that looks like a piece of breaded fried chicken. Rude operates a gemstone business, but has said the odd formation is “currently not for sale.” It’s unclear what she intends to do with it.

Jewel Cave officials say the “Tater Tot Crystal” is in a northeastern passage called “Never Never Spring” and it’s not on any public tour routes.

The cave, 13 miles west of Custer, has more than 208 miles of “mapped and surveyed passage ways,” with hundreds of suspected passages yet to be explored, according to the National Park Service.