El Paso Sits at the Heart of One of the Most Remarkable Ecosystems on Earth

Most El Pasoans wake up every morning, look out at the desert, and think nothing of it. Just sand, scrub, and heat. But here is something that might change how you see the drive to work: you live at the center of one of the most biologically rich and unique ecosystems on the entire planet.

The Chihuahuan Desert, which stretches across West Texas, southern New Mexico, and deep into northern Mexico, is considered the most diverse desert in the Western Hemisphere and one of the three most biologically rich arid regions in the world. El Paso does not just border it, we sit right in the middle of it, sharing the landscape with neighboring Ciudad Juarez as one of the largest metro areas the desert contains.

The Numbers Are Staggering

The Chihuahuan Desert is home to as many as 3,500 plant species, including nearly a quarter of all cactus species on Earth. Roughly 1,000 of those plant species grow nowhere else on the planet. The desert also supports over 170 species of amphibians and reptiles, at least 18 of which are entirely endemic to this region, meaning they exist here and nowhere else. Perhaps the most surprising fact: the Chihuahuan Desert supports a wide variety of freshwater fish, with nearly half of those species being endemic. A desert with unique fish populations. Let that sink in.

The reason for all this diversity? Isolation. Surrounded by Mexico's two great mountain ranges, the Sierra Madre Occidental and the Sierra Madre Oriental, the Chihuahuan Desert developed its own evolutionary path over millions of years, producing life found nowhere else on Earth.

El Paso Kids Are Getting Up Close With All of It

The Conservation Society of El Paso is making sure the next generation of Sun City residents grows up understanding just how special their backyard is. Their Conservation Guardians Summer Camp runs seven weekly sessions from June 8 through July 31, open to kids ages 7 to 11.

Sessions alternate between two themes. Critter Connections turns campers into urban wildlife detectives, learning to identify local species -- from backyard pollinators to birds -- with field trips to Montessori West, the Indoor and Outdoor Conservation Centers, and Hueco Tanks. Desert Discovery dives deep into the Chihuahuan Desert itself, exploring how plants and animals survive in an arid landscape, with field trips to the Rio Grande, Ascarate Park, TecH2O, and Hueco Tanks.

The full session schedule:

• Week 1: June 8-12 (Critter Connections)
• Week 2: June 15-19 (Desert Discovery)
• Week 3: June 22-26 (Critter Connections)
• Week 4: July 6-10 (Desert Discovery)
• Week 5: July 13-17 (Critter Connections)
• Week 6: July 22-24 (Desert Discovery)
• Week 7: July 27-31 (Critter Connections)

Scholarships are available for families who need them. To register or learn more, contact the Conservation Society at (915) 353-9820 or info@conservationep.org.

The desert has always been here. Now you know what you have been living next to all along.