Explore Utah

Utah wildlife and plants

The animals and plants of Utah's mountain forests, red-rock desert, sagebrush valleys and Great Salt Lake wetlands.

Get to know Utah through the animals and plants that live here. Browse the 63 profiles by habitat or region, compare a species' seasonal habits, and follow the linked agency and university sources when you want to learn more. Start with the landscape you expect to visit, then narrow the list to wildlife or plants.

This is an introduction, not a full inventory or field guide. Region labels show where a species lives, not where you will see it. Seasonal notes describe general patterns, and we don't publish exact sites for nests, roosts, colonies or rare plants. Check the land manager's current access information separately before a trip.

Choose a way in

I saw something and want to learn about it.Search a common or scientific name below. If you don't know the name, start with a broad group and habitat, then compare the profile's details rather than relying on color alone.
I'm planning a nature walk.Choose a region and habitat, and read a few profiles before you leave. Keep expectations flexible: a quiet walk is still a chance to notice plants, tracks and the way habitats connect.
I'm looking for wildflowers.Start with the wildflower planning guide, then use the plant profiles. Flowering windows are broad patterns, not a bloom forecast.
I'm visiting with children or a new observer.Pick one plant and one animal to learn about. Make the goal careful observation, not finding every species on a checklist.

Learn the landscape

A seasonal comparison makes a familiar landscape easier to read. At Arches, rainfall strongly shapes the wildflower display; at Cedar Breaks, high meadows bloom through a short summer. Those are local examples of why one statewide "best week" would mislead. Try the mountain and desert habitats, then the spring and summer pages.

Each profile answers three separate questions: what the organism is, what habitat or range its sources support, and what a visitor can responsibly observe. Conservation labels are shown with their category, scope and date, because a federal listing, a state priority list and a native-or-introduced label answer different questions.

New: guides to 7 habitats, four seasons and watching well, with the profiles that belong together.

19 profiles.

Learn this habitat: Streams, wetlands and desert seeps

Wildlife

Birds

American avocet

An upturned bill, blue-gray legs and a sweeping feeding motion make this wetland shorebird especially distinctive.

Recurvirostra americana

Birds

Tundra swan

A large white migrant whose family groups link Utah's wetlands with Arctic nesting country.

Cygnus columbianus

Mammals

Moose

The largest member of the deer family in Utah, at home where northern mountain forest meets water.

Alces alces

Mammals

American beaver

A paddle-tailed rodent whose feeding and construction can transform a stream into a complex wetland.

Castor canadensis

A Townsend’s big-eared bat hanging from rock — File photo: Townsend’s big-eared bat in Utah, BLM archive. One of the bat species found in the state. Photo: John Larson / BLM Utah · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mammals

Bats

Insect-eating flying mammals whose lives depend on suitable roosts, water and a safe seasonal cycle.

Close-up of a gopher snake on rocky ground — File photo: Gopher snake, Arches National Park archive, May 2017. One of Utah’s nonvenomous snake species. Photo: Marty Tow / National Park Service · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Reptiles

Snakes

A diverse group of native predators best appreciated without handling or close-range identification attempts.

File photo: American avocets with raised wings at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Birds

Bear River refuge birds

Read the refuge as a changing set of habitats, from shallow feeding flats to marsh cover and deeper water.

Fish

Cutthroat trout

Utah's native trout, with distinct drainage histories and restoration needs that a familiar throat mark cannot tell on its own.

Oncorhynchus clarkii

Birds

Black-necked stilt

Pink legs and a straight, needlelike bill distinguish this black-and-white wader from its avocet neighbors.

Himantopus mexicanus

Birds

Eared grebe

A small diving bird whose long autumn stopovers reveal the importance of Great Salt Lake's invertebrate food supply.

Podiceps nigricollis

Amphibians

Western (boreal) toad

A warty mountain amphibian whose breeding waters and disease risks require a light touch from visitors.

Anaxyrus boreas

Amphibians

Northern leopard frog

A spotted frog that needs a connected mix of breeding water, moist feeding ground and overwintering habitat.

Lithobates pipiens

Fish

June sucker

A Utah Lake native whose recovery depends on both adult spawning access and safe nursery habitat for young fish.

Chasmistes liorus

Invertebrates

Monarch butterfly

An orange-and-black migrant whose caterpillars need milkweed and whose adults need flowers through the season.

Danaus plexippus

Plants

Trees

Fremont cottonwood

A broad-crowned river tree whose new generations depend on the right combination of flowing water, exposed sediment, and moisture.

Populus fremontii

Wildflowers

Alcove columbine

A small-flowered columbine of seeps and hanging gardens, where groundwater creates a cool refuge within the desert.

Aquilegia micrantha

Shrubs

Tamarisk

A non-native, water-loving shrub along southwestern rivers, and a target of restoration work.

Wildflowers

Showy milkweed

A broad-leaved native perennial whose clustered flowers support pollinators and whose leaves can host monarch caterpillars.

Asclepias speciosa

Wildflowers

Ute ladies'-tresses

A rare wetland orchid with a spiral of pale flowers, dependent on moist, relatively open habitat.

Spiranthes diluvialis