Mescalero Ridge

Extending north-south along the western edge of the Mescalero Ridge lies a vast sand sheet called the Mescalero Sands, named after the Mescalero Apaches who once hunted in these sandhills.^[4][5] In 1928, Nelson Horatio Darton of the United States Geological Survey observed: “On the east side of the Pecos Valley in southern New Mexico there are very extensive sand hills formed of deposits known as the ‘Mescalero Sands,’ which are doubtless of Quaternary age ...”^[6] In places, these sands climb up and over the Mescalero Ridge and spread out over portions of the Llano Estacado.

The north dune is an off-road vehicle area.^[7] The south dune is a National Natural Landmark.^[8]

Addendum: The Mescalero Sands National Natural Landmark South Dune are three mobile dunes separated by a vast oak forest known as "Shinnery" composed of shin high "Quercus harvardii". [2] Each of the three dunes are eroding from a Pleistocene lakebed that dates to 13,000 years ago.[5] They are located at the base of the of Mescalero Ridge known locally as the "Caprock" on the western side of the Llano Estacado between Tatum and Roswell, New Mexico five miles south of the north sands recreational area. [10] Past studies have shown the dunes are moving up to ten feet a year to the northeast as a result of the prevailing southwesterly winds. Surface water is known to have been observed in the west or center dune as a seep spring and the windmills in the immediate vicinity were collecting water at a depth of thirty-five feet before the Ogallala Aquifer began to decline. [9] Human presence dates back to 11,500 years ago with evidence of a Folsom/Midland Period occupation but the heaviest use of the dunes by Indigenous peoples occurred during the Formative Period between 1,150 and 1,500 years ago. [8,13 ] The first permanent resident in region was a buffalo hunter named George Causey who built a waystation at the base of the escarpment to serve the need for commerce between Midland, Texas and Roswell, New Mexico.[14] Another prominent figure it the immediate vicinity was a settler known as "Old Man" Harry Robinson who was buried next to his rock house east of the dune field in 1911.[9] One of the earliest families to settle near the dunes were the Browning's who established a ranching operation south of the dunes in the late 1880's. Clyde Browning became a valuable resource for the historical record within the surrounding local stating, "If it hadn't been for the sandhill white-tailed deer we would have starved out".[11] The deer which were considered a unique sub-species [1,3,4,6,7] became extinct in the mid-20th century. [11] However, the ecology of the biome is still rich and diverse with a breeding population of the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard, "Sceloporus arenicolus" as well as the Lesser Prairie Chicken "Tympanuchus pallidicinctus" which have been placed on the threatened/endangered species list. [12] Over 300 plant, mammal, avian, reptile and amphibian specimens have been collected within the Landmark and are now housed at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico [10]

Addendum: 1. Bailey, Vernon. 1931. Mammals of New Mexico, North American Fauna, No. 53, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Biological Survey, U.S. Government Printing Office, 412 pp. 2. Bailey, Vernon. 1913. Life Zones and Crop Zones of New Mexico, North American Fauna, No. 35, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Biological Survey, U.S. Government Printing Office, 100 pp. 3. Findley, James S., Arthur H. Harris, Don E. Wilson and Clyde Jones. 1975. Mammals of New Mexico, University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 360 pp. 4. Hall, H. Ernest. 1944. “Sandhill White-tailed Deer Restoration”, Project Record Report, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, Santa Fe, New Mexico 5. Hall, Steven A., 2008,” Archaeological Geology of the Mescalero Sands, Southeastern New Mexico”, Plains Anthropologist, Vol. 53, No. 207, pp. 279-290, 6. Ligon, J. Stokley. 1927. Wildlife of New Mexico Its Conservation and Management, New Mexico State Game Commission, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 212 pp. 7. Rogers, Walter. 1968. Report to the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, Santa Fe, New Mexico 8. Smith, Calvin B. 1966. The Paleo-Indian in Southeastern New Mexico, Transactions of the Second Regional Archaeological Symposium for Southeastern New Mexico and Western Texas, Special Bulletin No. 1, Midland Archaeological Society, Midland, Texas, pp. 3-8 9. Smith, Calvin B. 1971. Mescalero Sands Natural Studies Plan, Natural History Museum and the Paleo-Indian Institute, Eastern New Mexico University, 50 pp. 10. Smith, Calvin B. 1971. Proposed Study Area in the Mescalero Sands, Southeastern New Mexico, The New Mexico Academy of Science Bulletin, Vol. 12, No. 2, Santa Fe, New Mexico, pp. 19-20 11. Smith, Calvin B. 1985. To Save A Dune, The Greater Llano Estacado Southwest Heritage, Vol. No. 1, Hobbs, New Mexico, pp. 5-3, 12 and 19 12. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Species Assessment Team, New Mexico Ecological Services Field Office, 2024, “Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants, Federal Register, 89 (98) 13. Wendorf, Fred, Alex D. Krieger, Claude C. Albritton and T. D. Stewart. 1955. The Midland Discovery: A Report on the Pleistocene Human Remains from Midland, Texas, University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas 139 pp. 14. Whitlock, Vivian. 1970. Cowboy Life on the Llano Estacado, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma, 320 pp.

National Park Service 1982 “Mescalero Sands South Dune”, National Natural Landmarks, https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nnlandmarks/site.htm?Site=MESA-NM

Bureau of Land Management 2020 "Mescalero Sands North Dune OHV Area" https://www.blm.gov/visit/mescalero-sands-north-dune-ohv-area

Center for Biological Diversity 2011 "Dunes Sagebrush Lizard" https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/reptiles/dunes_sagebrush_lizard/index.html

• Mescalero Sands North Dune Off-Highway Vehicle Area
• High Plains Historical Foundation
• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Mescalero Ridge
• Public domain images of the Llano Estacado and Eastern New Mexico

• Mescalero Sands North Dune Off-Highway Vehicle Area
• High Plains Historical Foundation
• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Mescalero Ridge
• Public domain images of the Llano Estacado and Eastern New Mexico

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