Hydrologic monitoring in El Morro National Monument: Water years 2012 through 2014
Monroe SA and Soles ES. 2018. Hydrologic monitoring in El Morro National Monument: Water years 2012 through 2014. Natural Resource Data Series. NPS/SCPN/NRDS—2018/1162. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
Naturally occurring pools in the arid southwestern United States sustain a rich diversity of plant and animal life. In west-ern New Mexico, the Historic Pool in El Morro NM lies at the base of a sandstone bluff known as Inscription Rock, where humans, drawn to the pool, have left evidence of their pres-ence for centuries in the form of petroglyphs and inscriptions. In recent years the inscriptions have gradually eroded, possibly due to water flowing on and over the rock or to capillary action (Pranger 2001). The source of water in the pool is un-certain, with some maintaining the pool is fed by only surface runoff and others suggesting a groundwater source also exists (van Dam and Hendrickx 2007). The Southern Colorado Plateau Network (SCPN) Inventory and Monitoring Program of the National Park Service began monitoring hydrologic conditions at this site in 2010 with the goal of documenting water level fluctuations in the pool and in nearby observation wells (Soles and Monroe 2012). SCPN’s specific objective for this project is to determine status and trends of the water level in the Historic Pool. This information will improve understanding of the hydrologic relations be-tween water in the pool, local groundwater, and precipitation.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Monroe, Stephen; Soles, Ellen
- Date of Issue
- 2018-05
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- ELMO , NRSS , SCPN
- Keywords
- Historic pool, hydrology
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Geology and Soils | Geomorphology | Stream/River Channel Characteristics , Ecological Framework: Water | Hydrology | Groundwater Dynamics