White Sands National Monument (Geographic Keyword)

DOCUMENT Full-Text R.A. Varney. Kathryn Puseman. Linda Scott Cummings.

White Sands National Monument is located in the Tularosa Valley of south-central New Mexico. The Monument is situated entirely within the northern reaches of the Chihuahuan Desertscrub biome. Because the Tularosa Basin has no external drainage, plants tend to be dominated by halophytic types including four-wing saltbush, and alkalai sacaton. The water table in the basin is perched upon an impermeable clay layer that allows plant types such as sumac and cottonwood, normally found in more...