Wildlife
The diverse habitat supports diverse wildlife: There are 239 bird species, 42 species of mammal, and at least eight species of reptile, including rattlesnake, bull Snake, Eastern Yellowbelly Racer, and various lizards.
Residents active year round include deer, bobcat, coyote, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, marmot, squirrel, and rabbit. Most birds are seasonal. Golden eagle, sandhill crane, colorful Sage Grouse, and numerous migratory species.
The pronghorn are North America's fastest land animal, capable of speeds up to 45 miles per hour (72 km/h) (72 km/h), run free across the upland sagebrush at the east side. Bighorn sheep prefer the rocky cliffs of the refuge's west side. Numerous shallow lakes, grassy spring fed meadows attract the greatest variety of species.
Bighorn sheep were eliminated by disease and hunting in this area by 1915. Reintroduction began in 1954 from British Columbia stock. There are now approximately 300 bighorn sheep.
Read more about this topic: Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge
Famous quotes containing the word wildlife:
“Russian forests crash down under the axe, billions of trees are dying, the habitations of animals and birds are layed waste, rivers grow shallow and dry up, marvelous landscapes are disappearing forever.... Man is endowed with creativity in order to multiply that which has been given him; he has not created, but destroyed. There are fewer and fewer forests, rivers are drying up, wildlife has become extinct, the climate is ruined, and the earth is becoming ever poorer and uglier.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)