Best Of Tucson®

Best Indication That Something Fishy Is Going On

"Sand Trout" by Paul T. Edwards and Chris Tanz

You've driven by them a zillion times, with your car stereo thumping as you text away instead of watching the road. There, in the wash, it's a bird, it's a plane—no! It's the rare "Sand Trout." Backs arched, silvery skin glistening in the hot summer sun, these incredibly rare fish are highly adapted to our furnace-like temperatures—and most amazing of all, they can survive a complete absence of water in our desert washes. That is one tough fish. Next time you're in the area, take a walk down Tanque Verde and check out these leaping piscine beauties. And no, this is not a beer-induced mirage, though the drunken chimp on the nearby Nimbus street-front may well be ...