colorations
to camouflag
e them in the gyps
um sand. White
Sands National Monum
ent preserves a major part
of this gyps
um dune field, along with the pla
nts
and animals that have adapted s
uccessfully to this
constantly changi
ng environment.At the northern end of
the Chihuahuan Dese
rt lies a mount
ain-ringed valley, the Tularosa Basin. Rising from the heart of this basin
's
great nat
ural wonders-the glistening
white sands
of New Mexico. Grea
t wave-like dun
es of gypsum
sand have en
gulfed 275 square miles of desert here and c
Please fill out the following form to contact New Mexico Tech/reated the largest gypsum dune field in the world. The dunes, brilliant and white, are ever changing. They grow, crest, then slump but always advance. Slowly but relentlessly the sand, driven by strong southwest winds, covers everything in its path. Within the extremely harsh environment of the dune field, even pla
Note: All fields are required.nts and animals adapted to
desert conditions struggle to survive. Only a few
species of plants grow rapidly enough t
o sur
vive
burial b
y the mo
ving dunes, but
several typ
es
of small animals have evolved white colorations
t
You may also contact us by phone during our normal business hours from
8:00AM (MST) - 5:00PM (MST) Monday-Friday at the following numbers:
o camouflage them
in the gypsum sa
nd. White
Sands National Monument preserves
a major part
of this
gypsum dune fi
eld, along with t