Death Valley National Park

With the addition of 1,200,000 acres in 1995, Death Valley’s total acreage grew to 3,336,000, making it the largest national park outside of Alaska. Those millions of acres offer spectacular desert scenery, interesting and rare desert wildlife, complex geology, undisturbed wilderness, and sites of historical and cultural interest. The mysterious sliding rocks, which apparently have been blown across the desert floor by high winds, are just one of this parks many wonders.

The valley that gives the park its name was formed by a subsiding fault at the base of the Black Mountains, situated at the southern end of the Amargosa Range and forming the eastern side of the valley. To the west, the Panamint Mountains reach an elevation of 11,049 feet at the summit of Telescope Peak, the highest spot in the park. On the opposite extreme, Badwater Basin, at 282 feet below sea level, is the lowest place in the western hemisphere.

Known for summer temperatures well over 100 degrees F, Death Valley might not seem a likely place to search for wildlife. However, the valley’s range in altitude coupled with its position between the Mojave Desert and the Great Basin make for significant species diversity: more than 900 plant, 350 bird, 51 mammal, 36 reptile, and 5 amphibian species live here. Species endemic to Death Valley include 19 plants, several beetles, and 15 snails. The 700-foot-high Eureka Dunes at the northern end of the park--the highest in California--support three endemic plant species and four endemic beetle species.

From the barren saltpan habitat below sea level, up through the scrub communities, and farther up to bristlecone woodlands, availability of water dictates the makeup of local wildlife communities. Ponds, springs, streams, and irrigation ditches are home to five species of pupfish, including the endangered Devils Hole Pupfish. The well-watered golf course at Furnace Creek is a great magnet for migrating birds lost over the deserts; each spring and fall, birders converge here to look for rare eastern strays. Only meager rainfall reaches the valley floor (less than 2 inches per year), yet winter rains generally bring an array of ephemeral wildflowers in early spring.