‘Total chaos’: the biological wonderland threatened by Trump’s border wall
Summary
Quitobaquito Springs in Arizona is a unique natural area home to rare fish, snails, and turtles found nowhere else in the wild. The Trump administration built a 30-foot border wall nearby in 2020, which harmed the spring’s water flow and environment. Now, plans to build a second wall close to the spring threaten to further damage the habitat and species living there.Key Facts
- Quitobaquito Springs is an oasis in the Sonoran desert and home to rare species like the Sonoyta pupfish, springsnails, and the Sonoyta mud turtle.
- The area is sacred to the O’odham people, who have lived there for thousands of years.
- A 30-foot-tall border wall was completed in 2020 near the spring and caused reduced water flow and damage to the pond.
- A second wall, also 30 feet tall, is planned just 90-150 feet north of the current one and would require heavy machinery that risks destroying parts of the pond and mesquite trees.
- The mesquite grove is a critical habitat where the protected mud turtles burrow.
- Border crossings in this remote area have been very low since 2025, and many who cross seek asylum and expect to be caught.
- Thousands crossed near Organ Pipe in 2023-2024, but the numbers dropped after stricter asylum rules under the Biden administration.
- About 34 miles of secondary barriers exist, with hundreds more miles planned or under construction along the US-Mexico border.
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