Balmorhea State Park

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These pictures were taken at Balmorhea State Park, February, 1998. I was there to gather information and water samples for my groundwater hydrology research project. Visibility was a steady seventy feet, with the water temperature maitaining it's year-round 76 degrees. Balmorhea is located about a hundred miles southwest of Odessa, in the Davis mountains of west Texas. The "pool" in the park is fed by the San Solomon springs, with an average discharge of twenty million gallons of water per day. The "pool" is home to hundreds of Mexican Tetras, catfish, and the endangered Comanche Springs pupfish (the pupfish originally inhabited the Comanche springs, after the springs ceased to flow, the pupfish were transplanted into the San Solomon springs, which is the only place they are found). These pictures were taken using an Ikelite Aquashot II housing (with a disposable Kodak camera inside), and a substrobe and water correcting lens.

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click on the thumbnail to veiw full-size image

	The Davis Mountains. 12 million years ago, these were active volcanoes.
	Volcanic rocks that cover the bottom.
	A moss covered slope.
	Mexican tetras. Some of the critters that live in the "pool".
	A catfish that would not stop following me.
	The west Texas sunlight shining through the water.
	This is the larger of the two main springs. According to the thermometer in my console, the water discharged here is 75 degrees (F).
	This is the smaller of the two springs, emmitting water with a temperature of 80 degrees (F).
	Another shot of the sunlight and some critters (Mexican tetras).
	More tetras.
	Yet another shot of sunlight and some moss.
	More critters and still more sunlight.
	Me, with my bottles, preparing to gather water samples from the bottom.

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