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.