1. WHAT MAKES THE EDWARDS UNIQUE? > 1.8 million people depend on it for their source of water

2. Edwards Aquifer Ecosystem Sustaining essential freshwater flows to bays and estuaries during times of drought Guadalupe Estuary – San Antonio Bay

3. The Edwards Region is home to over 50 plant and animal species that live nowhere else in the world. No other aquifer in the world has the organism diversity that the Edwards has. No other known karst system has the range of cave adapted insects, fish, and salamanders found in the Edwards.

4. Endangered Species of the Edwards Region On the Land Golden Cheeked Warbler Black Capped Vireo 9 Species of Karst Invertibrates -found in caves In the Springs and the Aquifer Texas Wild Rice Fountain Darter Comal Springs Dryopid Beetle San Marcos Gambusia Peck’s Cave Amphipod Comal Springs Riffle Beetle Texas Blind Salamander Dependent on Edwards Spring flows The Whooping Crane shrimp, crab, and other marine life that require a mixture of fresh and saline water in the bays and estuaries

5. Edwards Aquifer Ecosystem A Treasure at Risk Barton Springs salamander with gas bubble disease Rapid, unsustainable urbanization is pushing aquatic species to the brink of extinction