Animals

Elk jump a boundary fence along the southern boundary of El Malpais National Monument. NPS photo Dale Dombrowski Despite the harsh, rugged lava landscape of El Malpais National Monument, wildlife abound. You can find everything from large mammals such as black bear, cougar, and elk, to tiny crustaceans like fairy shrimp. Look to the sky and you can find birds like majestic golden eagles or the smallest of hummingbirds. A further variety of reptiles, amphibians, butterflies, and arthropods are all found through the monument. See what you can discover both online and in person! × Species Attribute Definitions Definitions Occurrence Occurrence values are defined below. One or more Occurrence Tags may be associated with each Occurrence value. Present: Species occurs in park; current, reliable evidence available. Probably Present: High confidence species occurs in park but current, verified evidence needed. Unconfirmed: Species is attributed to park but evidence is weak or absent. Not In Park: Species is not known to occur in park. Occurrence Tags Adjacent: Species is known to occur in areas near to or contiguous with park boundaries. False Report: Species was reported to occur within the park, but current evidence indicates the report was based on misidentification, a taxonomic concept no longer accepted, or other similar problem of error or interpretation. Historical: Species' historical occurrence in park is documented. Assigned based on judgment as opposed to determination based on age of the most recent evidence. Abundance Abundant: Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, and counted in relatively large numbers. Plants: Large number of individuals; wide ecological amplitude or occurring in habitats covering a large portion of the park. Common: Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, but not in large numbers. Plants: Large numbers of individuals predictably occurring in commonly encountered habitats but not those covering a large portion of the park. Uncommon: Animals: Likely to be seen monthly in appropriate habitat and season. May be locally common. Plants: Few to moderate numbers of individuals; occurring either sporadically in commonly encountered habitats or in uncommon habitats. Rare: Animals: Present, but usually seen only a few times each year. Plants: Few individuals, usually restricted to small areas of rare habitat. Occasional: Animals: Occurs in the park at least once every few years, varying in numbers, but not necessarily every year. Plants: Abundance variable from year to year (e.g., desert plants). Unknown: Abundance unknown Nativeness Native: Species naturally occurs in park or region. Non-native: Species occurs on park lands as a result of deliberate or accidental human activities. Unknown: Nativeness status is unknown or ambiguous. × List Differences The Checklist contains only those species that are designated as "present" or "probably present" in the park. The Full List includes all the checklist species in addition to species that are unconfirmed, historically detected, or incorrectly reported as being found in the park. The full list also contains species that are "in review" because their status in the park hasn't been fully determined. Additional details about the status of each species is included in the full list. The checklist will almost always contain fewer species than the full list. Select a Park: El Malpais National Monument Select a Species Category (optional): All Amphibians Birds Fish Mammals Reptiles Vascular Plants Get Checklist Get Full List List Differences Species attribute definitions Search results will be displayed here. Visit NPSpecies for more comprehensive information and advanced search capability. Have a suggestion or comment on this list? Let us know.
NPS photo Dale Dombrowski Mammals If you are observant, you never know what you might find at El Malpais. More->   NPS photo Phillip Brown Butterflies Meadows dance with color when Lepidoptera flutter by. More ->	NPS photo Dale Dombrowski Birds Birding at El Malpais is a year-round treat, with distinct changes in bird life found during all four seasons. More->   NPS photo Amanda Murphy Reptiles & Amphibians Many lizards and snakes, one species frog , and one or two species of toads call El Malpais home. More ->