Muskrat
Stocky aquatic rodent with a vertically flattened tail, compact lodge, and busy wetland feeding routes
Wyoming, United States: places and wildlife — page 2
Browse the published Explore collection for Wyoming, United States. Open a discovery for its field guide, practical details, and background.
American Mink
Dark, low-slung mustelid moving quickly along water edges while hunting on land and underwater
Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel
Slender ground squirrel striped with alternating pale lines and spots, often upright beside prairie burrows
Prairie Vole
Small blunt-faced vole hidden within woven runways beneath dense grass, seldom crossing open ground
Bullsnake
Large blotched snake that hisses loudly, imitates a rattlesnake convincingly, but remains nonvenomous
Plains Garter Snake
Striped garter snake with a bold orange-yellow back stripe, especially at home near prairie wetlands
Sandy Tiger Beetle
Against pale Sandhills sand, the sandy tiger beetle reverses the usual camouflage equation: white becomes the color of concealment.
Blowout Penstemon
Blowout penstemon survives where moving sand defeats most plants, sending vanilla-scented flowers from the exposed face of a dune.
Sand Milkweed
Sand milkweed hugs loose prairie sand with thick woolly leaves, looking almost sculpted by the drought and wind around it.
Silky Prairie Clover
Silky prairie clover softens the Sandhills at ankle height, pairing pale hairs with pink flower spikes and roots built for shifting soil.
Soapweed Yucca
Soapweed gives western Nebraska an evergreen silhouette and stages one of the prairie’s most intimate partnerships with a tiny moth.
Giant Goldenrod
Nebraska’s floral emblem is a late-summer colony, not one giant flower: arching branches carry hundreds of tiny golden heads above a smooth bluish stem alive with visiting insects.
Ponderosa Pine
Ponderosa pine gives the Pine Ridge a western forest silhouette and reaches the eastern edge of its natural continental range in Nebraska.
Limber Pine
A few native limber pines reach east from the Rockies into Kimball County, forming one of Nebraska’s most surprising tree populations.
Rocky Mountain Juniper
Rocky Mountain juniper threads blue-green columns through Nebraska’s western escarpments, where it can meet and hybridize with eastern redcedar.
American Black Bear
America’s most widespread bear is often easier to recognize by tracks, clawed logs, and overturned stones than by a direct sighting.
Gray Wolf
Long legs, a broad muzzle, and purposeful travel distinguish a wolf whose family life shapes northern forests and human debate.
Moose
Long legs, a heavy overhanging muzzle, and an appetite for twigs and aquatic plants make the moose unmistakably built for northern country.
Pronghorn
Neither deer nor antelope, the pronghorn pairs extraordinary eyesight and speed with horns that shed their outer sheath.
Grizzly Bear
A shoulder hump, dished face, and long foreclaws distinguish the grizzly, while food and space—not aggression—govern most of its movements.
Black-capped Chickadee
Black cap, white cheeks, small bib, and a curious approach make this year-round northern songbird a foundational backyard identification.
Common Raven
Heavy bill, shaggy throat, and wedge-shaped tail separate the raven from crows as it works cliffs, tundra, forests, and towns.
Ruffed Grouse
Mottled bark-colored plumage, a dark tail band, and the male’s accelerating wing-drumming suit dense young forest better than open lawn.
Hermit Thrush
Spotted breast, plain face, and a reddish tail contrasting with a browner back identify the thrush behind one of Vermont’s clearest woodland songs.
Osprey
Dark eye stripe, kinked long wings, and reversible outer toes identify the fish specialist nesting beside Oregon waters.
Largemouth Bass
A jaw extending behind the eye, deep body, and dark side stripe separate largemouth bass from their smaller-mouthed relatives.
Bluegill
A deep compressed body, dark ear flap, and blue-green cheek identify a widespread sunfish that rewards close looking.
Northern Pike
Duckbill snout, rear-set fins, and pale bean-shaped spots identify the pike waiting almost motionless beside cover.
Monarch Butterfly
Orange wings with heavy black veins identify a migrant whose caterpillars can eat only milkweeds and whose journey outlasts any one summer adult.
Common Green Darner
Large size, bright green thorax, and a dark bull’s-eye on the forehead help identify a darner capable of continental movement.
Big Sagebrush
Three-toothed wedge leaves, silvery foliage, and a resinous scent identify a shrub that shelters far more life than its muted color suggests.
Douglas-fir
Three-pointed bracts protruding from each cone scale make Douglas-fir recognizable even when its immense crown is far overhead.
Silver Buffaloberry
A wind-pollinated plains shrub turns silver foliage and scarlet fruit into valuable food and cover along dry northern waterways.
Western Tiger Swallowtail
A big yellow swallowtail patrols Black Hills streams and canyon edges, often descending to damp mineral-rich ground.
Black Hills Goldenrod
A locally restricted goldenrod occupies thin seams of habitat where Black Hills limestone, shade, and moisture align.
Scarlet Globemallow
Scarlet globemallow places brilliant orange cups only inches above dry prairie soil, often where little else appears lush.
Black Hills Spruce
South Dakota’s state tree is a dense regional form of white spruce isolated in the cool Black Hills.
Rocky Mountain Maple
A modest canyon maple supplies vivid autumn color and dense wildlife cover in moist pockets of the otherwise pine-dominated Black Hills.
Bighorn Sheep
Restored bighorn herds use Black Hills cliffs as escape terrain, but disease carried by domestic sheep remains a serious management concern.
Brown-capped Rosy-Finch
Look first for warm brown cap, gray face, black forecrown, and pink-washed wings, then confirm it in alpine cliffs and talus above treeline, descending in winter. Those two clues make Brown-capped Rosy-Finch much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Mountain Plover
Look first for sandy plover with a white forehead and thin black forecrown in breeding plumage, then confirm it in shortgrass prairie, prairie-dog colonies, and sparsely vegetated fields. Those two clues make Mountain Plover much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Preble's Meadow Jumping Mouse
Look first for long bicolored tail, large hind feet, and a dark stripe along the back, then confirm it in dense streamside vegetation along the colorado front range and southeastern wyoming. Those two clues make Preble's Meadow Jumping Mouse much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Southern Rocky Mountain Boreal Toad
Look first for warty toad with a pale stripe down the back and no cranial crests, then confirm it in high-elevation wetlands, ponds, and willow edges in the southern rockies. Those two clues make Southern Rocky Mountain Boreal Toad much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Greenback Cutthroat Trout
Look first for dense black spotting and orange-red throat slashes beneath the jaw, then confirm it in cold clear south platte headwater streams behind barriers to nonnative trout. Those two clues make Greenback Cutthroat Trout much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Colorado River Cutthroat Trout
Look first for red-orange throat slashes, warm flanks, and spotting concentrated toward the tail, then confirm it in cold western-slope headwaters in the colorado and green river basins. Those two clues make Colorado River Cutthroat Trout much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Colorado Hairstreak
Look first for purple wings with broad dark margins and orange spots near the hindwing tails, then confirm it in gambel oak woodland and scrub in colorado and the four corners region. Those two clues make Colorado Hairstreak much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Rocky Mountain Columbine
Look first for blue-violet sepals, white petals, and long backward-pointing spurs, then confirm it in montane and subalpine meadows, open woods, and moist rocky slopes. Those two clues make Rocky Mountain Columbine much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.
Colorado Blue Spruce
Look first for stiff sharp four-sided needles and gray-brown furrowed bark, then confirm it in cool stream valleys and moist mountain slopes in the central and southern rockies. Those two clues make Colorado Blue Spruce much easier to identify responsibly in Colorado.