Arid lands of the Southwest

Abstract

When thinking about plants and animals that inhabit hot arid lands of the southwestern U.S., fish are easily overlooked by most people. However, these desert lands often contain isolated springs or cienegas (a Spanish term referring to permanently saturated 'seep wetlands') and streams supporting native fishes that occur no where else in the world. These aquatic remnants from the last Ice Age have survived for thousands of years due to an amazing ability to tolerate harsh environmental conditions, especially extremely high water temperatures, high salinities, and unpredictable water flows.