Watch: Threatened pools in Mexican desert hold clues to early life

The microbes from the crystal blue pools of Cuatro Ciénegas, a butterfly-shaped basin among the mountains of northern Mexico, are tied to marine life that originated hundreds of millions of years ago. But during the time researchers have been investigating the area, canals and illegal wells draining groundwater have dried some of these springs.

Watch to learn what has kept scientists coming back to this area, and how their research has ultimately protected these pools.