Petroglyph sites named to national historic register

Twelve petroglyph sites in southern New Mexico have been named to the National Register of Historic Places. The New Mexico Historic Preservation Division says that gives the sites the highest level of national significance. The sites are part of the Summerford Mountain Archaeological District in the Dona Ana Mountains. The district covers more than 21-hundred acres owned by the Chihuahuan Desert Rangeland Research Center at New Mexico State University. It's not open to the public, nor has it ever been subject to excavations or looting. Archaeologists say the petroglyphs at the 12 sites include variety and are different from those found in northern New Mexico.