SOCORRO, N.M. –The New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources recently announced the publication of The Geology of Southern New Mexico’s Parks, Monuments, and Public Lands.

The southern parks book is the companion to the award-winning, The Geology of Northern New Mexico’s Parks, Monuments, and Publics Lands published a decade ago, which is now available in a revised third printing.

Bureau Director Dr. Nelia Dunbar announced the publication at the NMT Board of Regents meeting in early May. She said the pandemic has created challenges for distributing the book; however, the book will be available statewide in book stores, visitor centers, and state parks soon.

The new book contains geologic descriptions of 62 parks and public lands, divided into six geologic provinces present in southern New Mexico: the Colorado Plateau/Mogollon Slope, the Mogollon–Datil Volcanic Field, the Basin and Range, the Rio Grande Rift, the Permian Basin, and the Southern Great Plains.

All national parks and monuments, all state parks, many state monuments and historic sites, and many geologically-important national forest areas, wilderness and wilderness study areas, and scenic byways are included. The book is available online for $29.95.

Click here to purchase the book online.

“We present and illustrate the geology of much-visited locations like national parks, but also covered places that aren’t even parks in the conventional sense of the word,” said editor and emeritus Bureau Director Dr. Peter Scholle. “We wrote about entire national forests, on the one hand, and also feature some highway overlook sites and pull-offs. But the scenery that you can see from there–the vistas are spectacular and geologically fascinating.”

In a step beyond the northern parks book, the new book includes a few additional areas of special geological interest that are unique to southern New Mexico, such as the Very Large Array operated by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and Nature Conservancy ecological preserves along the Gila and Mimbres Rivers.

Each public land entry includes a description of the regional setting and geologic history, a simplified geologic map and stratigraphic column describing the types of the rocks found at the site, and photographs of prominent geologic features and spectacular vistas. Furthermore, each entry includes directions to the site, contact information for the managing agency if appropriate, and suggested non-technical resources that can provide additional information.

The writing is geared towards the public, uses non-technical language, and the book includes a glossary of geologic terms.

“We produce a lot of technical material that is aimed towards geologists, so the Southern Parks book is important in the sense that it's an approachable resource that educates our customer base about New Mexico's geology,” says Bureau Publications Resource Specialist Elena Taylor. “Most of our customers enjoy exploring public lands and it's definitely a plus that the southern parks book is written as a guidebook.”

The articles for each park are written by scientists who are experts in that area. Many of the scientists are Bureau geologists, but some entries are written by scientists from other organizations.

“This book is genuinely one of my favorite products in the store,” Taylor said. “The writing draws you in and makes you want to learn about how some of the most famous landscapes in our state were formed.”

The Geology of Southern New Mexico’s Parks, Monuments, and Public Lands is a gateway to understanding the spectacular natural beauty of southern New Mexico.

“It’s a book about geology and the beauty of geology; and the excitement of geology and the adventure of geology; and the stunning scenery of geology, and the connection between geology and that scenery,” Scholle said. 

The book is available for purchase on the Bureau’s website at geoinfo.nmt.edu or over the phone at (575) 835-5490. 

The New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources is a non-regulatory research and service division of New Mexico Tech in Socorro. For 93 years, the Bureau has served as the geological survey for the state of New Mexico.

– NMT –