The fifth largest national park in the USA, this park extends almost 1000 square km, or about 360 square miles. Wildlife includes Black bears, Coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, Cascade red foxes, fishers, raccoons, minks, striped skunks and weasels. In 2020 a remote camera captured images of wolverines the first sighting for 100 years.

Covering 150 square miles, the Saguaro national park is an area of semi desert with many Saguaro cactus. This plant grows incredibly slow, usually only 2.5-3cm tall after  8years old.

Hosting an interesting array of wildlife, it includes a surprising number of predators. Bear in mind that this reserve though small, is surrounded by good habitat, which means that species requiring much room to roam can still spend some of their time within the national park.

Mammals seen include desert cottontails, Antelope jackrabbit, black-tailed jackrabbit, a variety of squirrels and chipmunks. mule deer and white tailed deer live in the area, alongside collard-peccary. Cat species include bobcats and mountain lions, and dog species include grey foxes and coyotes. Black bears are also present. along with coatis several species of skunk as well as ringtails. Gila monsters are among the reptiles that can be seen.

This mountain range stretches up half of the west coast of north America. Current wildlife includes black bear, wolverine, river otter, cougar, lynx and bobcat. Up until the 1940s there was a subspecies of wolf called the cascade mountain wolf, and more recently there were also subspecies of the red and fisher fox in this area as well. Thankfully the British Columbian wolf (often more brown than other subspecies) has begun to recolonize this habitat while this recolonisation is in its infancy, close areas have healthy populations so it is likely to only be a matter of time.

Wolves also appear to be slowly recolonizing (though not the former subspecies). Also Grizzly bears have started recolonizing the far north of the range. They are still very rare in this area, and so are only sighted occasionally (just a few sightings in the last decade)

The Olympic national park lies on the Olympic peninsula which sticks out into the Pacific ocean.  covering over 1400 square miles, this area has a wide variety of wildlife including land mammals such as black bears, mountain goats, goats, elk, Roosevelt elk, foxes, a variety of deer and Douglas Squirrel. Sea mammals include sea otters, Sea lions, grey whales, humpback whales, dolphin and orca. Birds that you can see include bald eagles.

The Blue Ridge mountains stretch across extends 550 miles southwest from southern Pennsylvania through Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. While still a wilderness, the areas surrounding this refuge are becoming increasingly urbanized.

As with many mountain ranges in the developed world this mountain range has provided a refuge for many animals eradicated elsewhere.  Beavers, elk, peregrine falcons, and river otters, not long ago gone from the Southern Appalachians can now be found along this refuge. Others that were reduced to near extinction, such as wild turkeys and black bears, are making a strong comeback. Northern flying squirrels also live in this refuge.

Human habitation also goes back about 10,000 years.

Monument valley in Arizona is a series of incredible rock formations (and is not really a valley at all). Carved from the rocks over millions of years, these rock formations (mostly shale, sandstone and siltstone)  there is a surprising quantity of wildlife that holds on in this area. The whole area lies within Navajo Nation Reservation and is sacred to them.

Alongside a small range of mammals (Desert cottontail, Jackrabbits, mountain lions, Coyotes, there are also a variety of reptiles including lizards and iguanas, alongside birds such as the Red-tailed hawk and the tree sparrows.

The Finger lakes region in new york state is a surprising area of wilderness. Despite having 1.2 million people in this region, there is also a great deal of wildlife, including river otters, beavers, black bears, wild turkeys and white-tailed deer. In terms of birds, local species include bald eagles, great blue Herons, wild turkeys and Sandhill cranes.

The Dordogne river is 300 kilometres long, and is a relatively healthy river which means that much wildlife lives in and around the river. sturgeons, salmon, otters, swans, cormorants, egrets, and kingfishers are seen along much of its length.

The area surrounding the river is close to the Spanish and Italian border, and as such has got small numbers of wolves. Should they not be hunted as they arrive, the wolves are likely to thrive in the area, due to the large number of herbivores that live around here. Furthermore, with careful management, it is going to have a positive impact on the local economy.

While Mount Whitney is the highest peak in California and the USA, standing at 4,417m. However this is not the only attraction within this national forest. Covering an area of 3125 square miles and with about 4 million visitors each year, it is a popular destination.

While wolves and other apex predators are yet to return, there is still a variety of interesting mammals to look out for, including Mountain Lions, coyotes, black bears, mule deer, striped skunks and a whole range of other small mammals.

This park is nearly 1200 square miles in area and this surrounded on the south east by the Sierra national forest and on the north west by the stanislaus national forest. It is well known for a number of features, not least its cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams as well as glaciers and biological diversity. More than 90% of the park is designated wilderness and as such supports a wide variety of animals. 

Wildlife species found in the park include black bears, coyotes, raccoon, mountain kingsnake, Gilbert skink, white headed woodpecker, bobcat, river otter, grey fox, red fox, brown creeper, two species of skunk, cougar, spotted owl and a variety of bats. At higher elevations there are other animals such as whitetail jackrabbits, yellow bellied marmot, Clark’s nutcracker, pika and black Rosy Finch.

Despite the wealth of high quality habitats in Yosemite, brown bears California and condor and the least bell’s Vero have become extinct in the park in relatively recent times. The last wolves were hunted in the 1920s, and while they are yet to be photographed within the park they have been seen very close. The California brown bear, or grizzly, has been extinct for quite some time. It is likely to return on its own eventually but it would be good if it was given a helping hand -it’s decline was relatively rapid, back in 1850 there were thought to be at least 10,000 grizzly bears but by 1925 they were all gone.

Whether you want to drop in or spend a considerable amount of time here it is well worth a visit.