Sprawling across a cactus-studded valley in México's Chihuahuan Desert is a place like no other on the planet. . It's called Cuatrociénegas, and it is a crunchy expanse of land isolated in a basin ringed by mountains like salt on the rim of a margarita glass. The seemingly dry, desert area, however, is best known for its life-giving waters—pools, wetlands and rivers filled to the brim with an amazing assortment of unique species. "This is an incredibly diverse area for this part of the world, with more endemic species per area than the Galápagos Islands," says Dean Hendrickson, curator of ichthyology at the Texas Natural Science Center. But Cuatrociénegas is not immune to change, and its rare ecosystems are under increasing pressure from climate change, invasive species and agriculture. Hendrickson, who has been visiting the area since 1979, now finds himself working with others to forge a sustainable future for the region. "My vision is to get a big interdisciplinary, international project going and try to find solutions that we can propose to the local community," he says. He has established a permanent research station in town, and he hopes this will encourage more researchers from other fields to begin projects there. "There are very complex issues here that go way beyond simple biology and conservation and get into sociology and economics," he says.

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin are studying the biology and hydrology of Cuatrocienegas, a rare and endangered desert oasis in northern Mexico. Covers research of Dean Hendrickson and Brad Wolaver.