Quitobaquito Springs are springs in

Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is a U.S. national monument and UNESCO biosphere reserve located in extreme southern Arizona that shares a border with the Mexican state of Sonora. The park is the only place in the United States where the ...

Pima County, Arizona Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...

. The name is of Tohono O'odham origin meaning 'house ring spring'. The area has been populated for at least 16,000 years. It lies at an elevation of , west of the south end of the Quitobaquito Hills, along the border of the United States with Mexico. The only US populations of the endangered Quitobaquito pupfish, the Sonoyta mud turtle, the desert caper, and the Howarth's white butterfly are found here. The Quitabaquito tryonia is an

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

resident of the springs.

History

The area around Quitobaquito Springs has been populated by desert-dwelling peoples for at least 16,000 years. It has served as a water source for local Tohono O'odham people. It was used by the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

explorers, Díaz, Kino, Garces and de Anza. El Camino del Diablo trail established by de Anza from

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

used and passed through the area of the spring which provided a trail for subsequent travelers between Sonora and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

into the later 19th century. The famous pond fed by the springs was built in the 1860s, and has a clay liner that requires frequent upkeep. In mid-2020, there was a massive drop in the pond's water levels, the likes of which have only been seen a few other times in the prior 60 years, causing large stretches of mudflats over the pond's north side. It has been speculated that this drop may be due to

overdrafting Overdrafting is the process of extracting groundwater beyond the equilibrium yield of an aquifer. Groundwater is one of the largest sources of fresh water and is found underground. The primary cause of groundwater depletion is the excessive pum ...

by farmers in

Sonoyta Sonoyta, Sonora, is a town in the northern States of Mexico, Mexican state of Sonora. It stands on the U.S.-Mexico border, facing Lukeville, Arizona, in the United States. It is the municipal seat of the municipality of Plutarco Elías Calles, S ...

as well as the summer heat, but others suspect that the drop may be due to the construction of the

Mexico–United States border wall The Mexico–United States border wall is a series of disjoined physical barriers built along portions of the Mexico–United States border. The barriers were constructed in a piecemeal manner over the course of several President of the United ...

nearby, which could have caused cracks in the pond's lining, causing water leakage, as well as excessive pumping of groundwater to create

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

for the wall.

References

{{Coord, 31, 56, 38, N, 113, 01, 10, W, display=title Quitobaquito Springs Gran Desierto de Altar