North American Wildlife

The United States and Canada are very diverse containing every major biome starting from the Tundra in the Arctic and ending with tropical regions in the south. Almost all of the pictures on this site so far are from USA with a few exceptions. The United States itself has every biome within its borders as well but, most of my pictures are from the deciduous forests on the eastern coast. Here the animals are mostly small mammals, reptiles and many types of birds. The only large animals are deer, elk, and bears.

Wildlife Links
	Above are two of North America's most common animals, the deer. The deer on the left is a young one since it has spots on it still, these will disappear within one year. The buck on the right is an adult male with full antlers. Left Buck: British Columbia Canada; Right, Deer: Springfield, Virginia

	Large game animals are mostly found up in the northern part of the continent. Both of the pictures above where taken from very far away. Large packs of both elk and moose are seen in the north of America and most parts of Canada as well as grizzly bears. Grizzly bear/Pack of Elk: Yellowstone, Wyoming.

Hundreds of years ago millions of buffalo, also known as bison roamed the great plains and the western parts of the continent. Bison where almost brought to extinction because of heavy poaching, but today their numbers have greatly increased. Bison: Yellowstone, Wyoming.

Rabbits are common animals found all over the continent, both while hiking in forests and in suburban areas as well. Above are two rabbits from opposite ends of the North American continent. Left rabbit: Watoga, West Virgina; Right Rabbit: Cody, Wyoming.

At one point and time wolves and coyotes appeared in the majority of the United States and Canada. In modern times they have been driven to the north are mostly seen through out Canada and the western parts of the United States. They prey on small animals like rodents such as rabbits and chipmunks, and other times act as scavengers. Coyote: Yellowstone, Wyoming; chipmunk: Washington state.

The most common animal in the United States is the tree squirrel. Most of them are often seen running through people's yards and crossing streets in both countryside and well as any city with enough trees. Tree squirrels are the most popular, but the great plains also has many ground squirrels that burrow live in borrows instead of high in the trees. Tree squirrel: Idaho Falls, Idaho; ground squirrel: Yellowstone, Wyoming.
	Some aquatic mammals and reptiles are the beaver to the left, and turtles seen below. Both of these animals are able to survive in the deep south and all the way up into the sub artic. Turtles are the most common reptile because of their extremely slow pace, it is difficult for them to run away if they hear someone approaching. Beaver: Baton Rouge, Louisana Turtles: Lake Accotink, Virginia.

	Two last photos of Portsmouth showing it's harbor, the weather wasn't so good that day but you can get an idea of the size of the city. The large buildings on the upper right are actually residential apartments right on the waterfront.

Above are two more species of box turtles found in the United States. I'm not sure the exact species of either one, but on the left is a box turtle from Missouri. The other turtle above is pretty hard to identify since he is so deep in the mud. Left Box Turtle: Ozarks, Missouri; Right Turtle: Coastal Swamps, Delaware

Lizards are easy to spot while traveling since there are so many of them. In fact, I have a photo of a lizard from almost every page on my site since they are so frequent. The blue tailed skink above was one of my favorite as a kid because of its strong colors. I'm not sure of the species on the right. Left: Blue tailed Skink Elephant Rocks, Missouri; Right: Lizard, Joshua Tree, California

The majority of snakes in the United States are not poisonous, but there are a few dangerous ones people should be careful of. These guys are harmless, and I actually picked them up after I found them and then let them continue on their mission in life. I used to have a pet garter snake when I was little which is a relative of the one on the upper left. Left: Ribbon Snake, Watoga, West Virginia; Right: Ringneck Snake, Watoga West Virginia

Like snakes, most spiders in the United States are not poisonous, the two most dangerous spiders in USA are the brown recluse and the black widow. Each of those can be deadly worse case scenario, and at minimum they'll probably put you in the hospital. Left: Wolf Spider - Watoga, West Virginia; Right: Spider - Manatee Springs, Florida.

On the left is a large moth seen in my hometown of Springfield Virginia. On the right is a monarch butterfly from West Virginia. Butterflies are very common throughout the entire continent, but monarch butterflies like on the right are famous for their migration to Mexico.

The stream of 'smoke' you see on the left is actually made from thousands of bats heading out into the evening to hunt for bugs. The bats usually hunt for flying bugs such as mosquitoes and can eat several thousand pounds of them in a single night! The bats are from Austin, Texas, the centipede is from the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia.

Dragonflies are very common in all the 50 states and parts of Canada. I'm not sure the exact species of the roach like looking bug on the right, but it was seen with a dozen other ones in some woodland area. Dragonflies/Roach: Yellowstone, Wyoming.

	One of the best birds to spot in the United States is the bald eagle, as it is the country's national bird. They exist throughout Canada and in all of the states in America, including both Alaska and Hawaii. I had never seen a bald eagle before until I visited Yellowstone Wyoming. There I saw several bad eagles during my first few days in the state. The bald eagle was once endangered but has made a strong comeback. In early 2007 the government relaxed restrictions protecting bald eagle habitats. Bald Eagle: Yellowstone, Wyoming..

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North American Wildlife Travel

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