SAN SOLOMON SPRINGS. San Solomon Springs (also known as Mescalero or Head Springs), the seventh largest group of springs in Texas, rises in southwestern Reeves County (at 30°57' N, 103°47' W) and flows into a swimming pool in Balmorhea State Park in Toyahvale. The Jumano and Mescalero Indians used the water to irrigate corn and peach trees. The springs flowed at an average rate of 230 gallons per second in 1900 and 1978. The springs are the home of several rare freshwater animals including the Comanche Springs pupfish and the Leon Springs pupfish, the original habitats of which have been destroyed, as well as the Pecos gambusia or mosquito fish, a small crustacean, and two kinds of aquatic snail. The terrain surrounding the springs is characterized by steep to gentle slopes with variable soil types. Vegetation consists primarily of scrub brush and sparse grasses.
