See the variety of wildlife that relies on wetland habitats dispersed across the expansive San Luis Valley of Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

• The San Luis Valley is huge!  It is 150 miles long north-south and 50 miles wide, encompassing 4,000 square miles ( 2.56 million acres).
• The valley is a high-altitude cold desert environment, with annual precipitation of only 7.6 inches.
• Snowmelt originating in the San Juan Mountains and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains coupled with water from the Rio Grande River create patches of wetlands in the relatively dry valley.
• Approximately 50% of the San Luis Valley is private land used primarily for agriculture.   Irrigation for agriculture also creates important wetland habitats for wildlife.

Learn more about the San Luis Valley Conservation Area.