Dagger Flat, Big Bend National Park, Texas. The CDEC board meets monthly to discuss important topics, make plans, and talk about how to better conserve our Chihuahuan Desert. This past month, we had our first meeting of the year and made some big plans, so keep your eyes open for new events and more. TheContinueContinue reading “We have exciting plans for 2025!”
Tag Archives: conservation
El Paso water aquifers predicted to run out in 31-42 years
Saving Water by Robert D. Vines PE, C.P.M. Note – Robert is on the Advisory Board of Directors of the Chihuahuan Desert Education Coalition, one of the Zoo’s most important education partners. El Paso receives sixty percent of its water from two large aquifers. An extensive analysis by Dr. Alex Mayer at UTEP indicates thatContinueContinue reading “El Paso water aquifers predicted to run out in 31-42 years”
Chihuahuan Desert Sky Island, Mt Livermore
Mt. Livermore, Davis Mountains Preserve, Texas Looking into the desert, I see waves. Cresting. One folding on the other. A land shaped by an ancient sea transformed into an arid stretch of rolling hills and mountains. Fed only by monsoon summers and dry winters. I row through this ocean of cactus and creosote to findContinueContinue reading “Chihuahuan Desert Sky Island, Mt Livermore”
Homer Wilson Ranch, Chihuahuan Desert, Big Bend National Park, Texas
There is no straight line through the desert. What looks easy is hard. ‘Barranco’ after ‘barranco’, all hidden from the horizon. Impassible terrain. Snaking a path is the only way. Driving into Big Bend National Park, shades of purple compete with mounds of desert brush. Each clamoring for the win. Key notes of Freddy FenderContinueContinue reading “Homer Wilson Ranch, Chihuahuan Desert, Big Bend National Park, Texas”
Resurrection Fern
Blown about by the wind. Finding life in desiccation. Not to be confused by the “true” Rose of Jericho, the “false” Rose of Jericho (S. lepidophylla) is native to the Chihuahuan desert and one of the most adaptive plants here. A wanderer, persistent and tough. Tenacious. S. lepidophylla in its dormant state Resurrection plants areContinueContinue reading “Resurrection Fern”
Black River, New Mexico
Campfire throwing shadows across my horse. Dog rolling in the hay – dirty of course. Ever searching for that last buried bone. It’s early morning, the sun still asleep. We sit, listening to distant sounds of highway mixed with propane flames. Coffee brewing. Color slowly unrolls to the east as I prepare to ride andContinueContinue reading “Black River, New Mexico”
Secrets of the Desert
There are some places kept mostly secret. More vulnerable than others. Not as stable as they seem. At Big Bend National Park horses are allowed on all gravel roads, most trails, and backcountry across the desert. In a vast land occupied by many before us, there is more to discover than most know. But youContinueContinue reading “Secrets of the Desert”
Myths and Facts about Wild Horses and Burros
Article from: https://awionline.org/content/myths-and-facts-about-wild-horses-and-burros Myth: There are too many wild horses and burros on public lands and their numbers must be reduced. Fact: The opposite is true—there are too few wild horses and burros on our public lands, and unless their numbers grow, the survival of these special animals is in jeopardy. During the 1800’s, it is estimatedContinueContinue reading “Myths and Facts about Wild Horses and Burros”
Desert Beauty: Living Rock Cactus
Look closely at her secrets. Buffers of creosote between thorny arms of mesquite and the spines of ocotillo. Plants intertwine but like an iceberg, there is much more beneath the surface. There is beauty here. In the fall, glimpses of fuscia mark my path. Gone as quickly as they appear. A flower appears from rock. ContinueContinue reading “Desert Beauty: Living Rock Cactus”
Biosphere Region and Reinhabitation
In the 1970s, a counterculture group called Planet Drum Foundation was formed in California to discuss ideas about people in connection to the planet. They pursued research and produced educative information on the relationships between human culture and the natural processes of the planetary biosphere. Today when confronting environmental crisis and conservation, we use termsContinueContinue reading “Biosphere Region and Reinhabitation”