Management of Subterranean Ecosystems in Extreme Environments
Monte Neva Hot Springs

Map coordinates:  38.9494, -115.701
Water temperature:   93.02°F
Site ID:   NV-352.1

Big Warm Spring, Duckwater Shoshone Reservation

Big Warm Spring on the Duckwater Shoshone Reservation. Image courtesy of Matt Bowers, Third Media.

Two main warm spring areas are located near the small community of Duckwater, which is on the Duckwater Indian Reservation in northeastern Nye County. Big Warm Spring or Duckwater Spring is located in Sec. 32, Tl3N, R56E and has a reported temperature of about 32.5°C (Eakin and others, 1951; Mifflin, 1968; Van Denburgh and Rush, 1974). Little Warm Spring, in Sec. 5, Tl2N, R54E, is about the same temperature. Both springs rise in alluvium a short distance west of a north-striking, range-bounding fault (Stewart and Carlson, 1974). The area may have been called the Burrell Hot Springs district in the past. The water is used locally.

A geothermal catfish-growing facility was operated at this site, on the Duckwater Indian Reservation, between 1982 and the early 1990s. When in operation, over 136,000 kg of prime 0.2 kg catfish filets per year were produced (Geo-Heat Center Quarterly Bulletin, December 1992).

[This spring is located on tribal land. Visitors should seek permission before planning a trip.]

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Big Warm Spring, Duckwater Shoshone Reservation


Geochemistry


  1. Sample date:1950-04-26
  2. Sodium (Na):28
  3. Potassium (K):6.5
  4. Lab-test pH:8
  5. Calcium (Ca):62
  6. Total dissolved solids:380
  7. Magnesium (Mg):22
  8. Iron (Fe):0.059
  9. Strontium (Sr):n/a
  10. Lithium (Li):n/a
  11. Boron (B):0.11
  12. Silica (SiO2):25
  13. Bicarbonate (HCO3):321
  14. Sulfate (SO4):47
  15. Chloride (Cl):8.6
  16. Fluoride (F):0.6

Resources


Image by Matt Bowers / Third Media

All snakes can swim.... but not in scalding mineral water! This one suffered a rather quick fate and is now being calcified into the streambed. Traveling north towards Cherry Creek, Nevada, along the old shelf road on the west side of Steptoe Valley, Monte Neva Hot Springs bubbles up out of the ground at about 175°F. Image courtesy of Matt Bowers / Third Media.

Invasive Plant Species

Cheatgrass

One of the major ecological threats to the sagebrush-dominated Great Basin ecosystem is the introduction and spread of dozens of species of non-native plants. The most important of these, cheatgrass (or downy brome) covers the largest area: 25 million acres, one-third of the area of the Great Basin.

Symposium Merchandise

Troglodyte Playing Cards

We have no idea what these will look like yet, but we couldn't think of hosting NCKMS in Nevada without offering some themed-out playing cards. There's a good chance the card backs will feature a cave animal of the year, but we still have some time to figure it out.

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