Flora and Fauna
The area is primarily forest. The northern slopes of the ridges and basins provide a suitable habitat for deciduous forest dominated by oak and hickory. Pines predominate on the south sides of the ridges. There are 230 acres (93 ha) of unlogged pine and oak forests on North and Hot Springs Mountains, and 90 acres (36 ha) on Sugarloaf Mountain. These old-growth forests contain shortleaf pine, blackjack oak, and white oak; many of the trees over 130 years old, and a few over 200 years old.
Plains Bison, Eastern Elk, North American Cougar and Red Wolf left the region after European settlement. Present day fauna include squirrel, rabbit, Virginia Opossum, Gray Fox, Coyote, skunk, Raccoon, gopher, Long-tailed Weasel, American Mink, rat, frog, and Nine-banded Armadillo. Some migratory birds following the Mississippi Flyway spend part of the year in the vicinity.
Read more about this topic: Hot Springs National Park
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