Springs of Southwest Project:

Places like nowhere else on Earth.

Dotting the landscape throughout the Southwest, springs are oases of life in otherwise arid lands. Surrounded by desert, short grass prairie, or dry mountains, plants and animals have evolved in isolation in these oases for millennia. A single spring can harbor rare species found nowhere else in the world. Compared to lakes or oceans, the total land mass springs occupy within the landscape may be small, but by some estimates, these ecosystems support more than 20 percent of the endangered species in the United States. In a landscape where water is in short supply, spring ecosystems create corridors - highways from spring to spring - that provide water, refuge, and relief for thousands of species.

Springs are the Southwest’s most endangered ecosystems. Until recently, springs have been little studied and little known. Scientists are still discovering and naming species that live in their ancient waters. Meanwhile, development, drying, and climate change threaten their existence. Many springs are continuously and unnecessarily destroyed by poor management practices and neglect. Lack of information and attention to springs ecosystems has resulted in the loss of up to 90% of our springs.

And yet, springs are also one of the most resilient of the Southwest’s ecosystems. Where aquifers that feed the springs exist intact, restoration can quickly bring these spring ecosystems back to life. It is more important than ever to raise awareness and call on people to act on behalf of these places and the species they harbor that deserve our protection.