City of Rocks
Encyclopedia
The City of Rocks National Reserve, also known as the Silent City of Rocks, is a United States National Reserve and state park
lying 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the south central Idaho
border with Utah
. It is widely known for its excellent rock climbing
and rock formation
s.
The rock spires in the City of Rocks and adjacent Castle Rocks State Park are largely composed of granitic rock of the Oligocene
Almo pluton and Archean
Green Creek Complex.
The City of Rocks is a popular rock climbing
area, with numerous traditional and bolt-protected routes. In the 1980s, it was home to some of the most difficult routes in the USA, mostly developed by Idaho climber Tony Yaniro. Climbers in the region refer to the area as simply 'The City'.
California Trail
wagon trains of the 1840s and 1850s left the Raft River
valley and traveled through the area and over Granite Pass
into Nevada
. Names or initials of emigrants written in axle
grease
are still visible on Register Rock. Ruts from wagon wheels also can be seen in some of the rocks.
just north of the Great Salt Lake Desert
. Signatures in axle grease on rock faces can be seen today. One emigrant saw the distant rocks in August like "water thrown up into the air from numerous artificial hydrants." Beginning in 1843, City of Rocks was a landmark for emigrants on the California Trail
and Salt Lake Alternate Trail
and later on freight routes and the Kelton, Utah
to Boise, Idaho
stage route.
The area's historical and geological values, scenery, and opportunities for recreation led to its designation as City of Rocks National Reserve in 1988. This unit of the National Park System is managed cooperatively by the National Park Service
and the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation.
and Bannock
tribes hunted the buffalo
that once roamed in the City of Rocks area and gathered the nuts of the pinyon pine trees. The arrival of horses in the Americas in the 16th century and swelling European immigration disrupted the Shoshone-Bannock homelands and traditional way of life. They grew to resent the intruders but could do little to stop them. Most emigrants on the California Trail saw no Native Americans, but some of their journals record smoke rising from high hills and the surrounding mountains.
In 1826, Peter Skene Ogden
and his Snake River brigade of beaver trappers were the first Euro-Americans to note the City of Rocks. Having few beaver
, the area was ignored until 1843, when growing streams of wagons began flowing through the area in the summer.
Early emigrant groups were guided by experienced mountain men such as Joseph B. Chiles
and Joseph R. Walker. Later wagon parties followed the trails themselves, perhaps with the help of diary accounts of previous emigrants. The City of Rocks marked progress west for the emigrants and, for their loaded wagons, a mountain passage over nearby Granite Pass. By 1846, emigrants headed for Oregon's Willamette Valley
also used this route as part of the Applegate Trail
. In 1848 Samuel J. Hensley pioneered the Salt Lake Alternate Trail from Salt Lake City via Emigrant Canyon to Granite Pass. In 1852, some 52,000 people passed through the City of Rocks on their way to the California
goldfields.
When the trails opened in the 1840s, Granite Pass was in Mexico
and less than a mile from Oregon Territory
. After 1850 the Pass became part of Utah Territory
, and in 1872 an Idaho-Utah
boundary survey error placed Granite Pass in Idaho Territory
. With completion of the transcontinental railroad
in 1869, the overland wagon routes began to pass into history. However, wagons saw continued use on regional supply routes that spread out from the railroad lines.
John Halley's stage route connected the railroad at Kelton, Utah
, with Idaho's mining hub of Boise, Idaho
, and supplied the early economic development
of Idaho, which won statehood
in 1890. The Kelton stage route passed through the City of Rocks, with a stage station set up near the junction of the old California Trail and the Salt Lake Alternate. Settlers began to homestead the City of Rocks area in the late 19th century. Dryland farming declined during the drought years of the 1920s and 1930s, but ranching survived. Livestock grazing began with early wagon use of the area in the mid-19th century and continues today.
declared Section 36 within City of Rocks as a state park under the jurisdiction of the Idaho Lands Board on February 27, 1957. In 1964, a much larger area was designated a national historic landmark
. On March 15, 1973, Section 36 was transferred to the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation from the Department of Lands. The following year, the area was designated a national natural landmark
. The National Park Service
studied the site in the 1970s and 80s as a proposed national monument
.
City of Rocks National Reserve was created November 18, 1988 by Public Law 100-696, Arizona-Idaho Conservation Act of 1988. This Act drew a 22 miles (35.4 km) boundary around 14407 acres (58.3 km²) owned or managed by the USDA Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management
, Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation (IDPR), and private individuals. All lands owned by the United States
within the Reserve boundaries were placed under the authority of the National Park Service (NPS). Between 1988 and 1996, the Reserve was co-managed by both NPS and IDPR. After the approval of a comprehensive management plan, the NPS officially transferred on-site management of the Reserve to IDPR on May 2, 1996. Today, the park functions under a unique cooperative agreement between the NPS and IDPR. Both agencies allocate partial funding to its operation. City of Rocks National Reserve is visited annually by over 80,000 visitors. The Reserve headquarters is located in the gateway community of Almo
.
country in south-central Idaho, has attracted and intrigued people since they first entered this region. The Shoshone
camped here as did the emigrants traveling along the California Trail. One of the reserve's most notable qualities is its large degree of biological diversity concentrated in a relatively small area. The great variety of textures, colors, and shapes in the natural landscape
contributes considerably to the reserve's scenic quality.
The landscape of City of Rocks has been sculpted from granite
that was intruded into the crust during two widely spaced times. The granite that composes most of the spires is part of the 28 million year old Almo pluton. However, some of the spires are made of granite that is part of the 2.5 billion year old Green Creek Complex that contains some of the oldest rocks in the western United States. The granite has eroded into a fascinating assortment of shapes.
City of Rocks was designated a National Reserve, a unit of the National Park Service, in recognition of the nationally significant geological and scenic values of its rock formations and the historical significance of the California Trail. Rock formations in the reserve developed through an erosion process called exfoliation
, during which thin rock plates and scales sloughed off along joints in the rocks. The joints, or fractures, resulted from the contraction of the granite as it cooled, from upward expansion of the granite as overlying materials were eroded away, and from regional tectonic stresses. The granite has eroded into a fascinating assortment of shapes as high as 600 feet (182.9 m). The upper surfaces of many of the rocks are covered with flat-floored weathering pits known as panholes. The most notable panhole is located on top of Bath Rock and is continuously filled with water from rain or snow melt.
/Snake-Columbia shrub steppe ecoregions and the Raft Watershed of the Upper Snake River
Basin, the habitat of the reserve supports a large variety of mammals, birds, reptiles, and invertebrates.
Notable plant life includes:
Other dominant plants in the City of Rocks National Reserve include:
. Average annual precipitation is approximately 14 inches (355.6 mm) at the lower elevations and 22 inches (558.8 mm) in the highest areas. Average snow depths for higher elevations range between 35 and 68 inches (1.7 m). Summers are hot and dry with occasional thunderstorms.
valley and to the north by the Snake River
valley. Elevations rise from 5650 feet (1,722.1 m) where Circle Creek meets the reserve boundary to 8867 feet (2,702.7 m) at the top of Graham Peak
to the north.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
lying 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the south central Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
border with Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. It is widely known for its excellent rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
and rock formation
Rock formations in the United States
The following is a partial list of rock formations in the United States, by state:-Arizona:*Canyon de Chelly National Monument**Spider Rock*Chiricahua National Monument**Duck on a Rock**Organ Pipe**Mushroom Rock**Sea Captain*Monument Valley...
s.
The rock spires in the City of Rocks and adjacent Castle Rocks State Park are largely composed of granitic rock of the Oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
Almo pluton and Archean
Archean
The Archean , also spelled Archeozoic or Archæozoic) is a geologic eon before the Paleoproterozoic Era of the Proterozoic Eon, before 2.5 Ga ago. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, this date is defined chronometrically...
Green Creek Complex.
The City of Rocks is a popular rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
area, with numerous traditional and bolt-protected routes. In the 1980s, it was home to some of the most difficult routes in the USA, mostly developed by Idaho climber Tony Yaniro. Climbers in the region refer to the area as simply 'The City'.
California Trail
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
wagon trains of the 1840s and 1850s left the Raft River
Raft River
The Raft River is a tributary of the Snake River located in northern Utah and southern Idaho in the United States. It is part of the Columbia River Basin.-Course:...
valley and traveled through the area and over Granite Pass
Granite Pass
Granite Pass is a mountain pass in the Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming traversed by U.S. Route 14....
into Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. Names or initials of emigrants written in axle
Axle
An axle is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to its surroundings, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearings or bushings are provided at the mounting points where the axle...
grease
Grease (lubricant)
The term grease is used to describe semisolid lubricants. Although the word grease is also used to describe rendered fat of animals, in the context of lubrication, grease typically applies to a material consisting of a soap emulsified with mineral or vegetable oil...
are still visible on Register Rock. Ruts from wagon wheels also can be seen in some of the rocks.
History
In 1849, an emigrant party with James Wilkins "encamped at the city of the rocks" on the California TrailCalifornia Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
just north of the Great Salt Lake Desert
Great Salt Lake Desert
The Great Salt Lake Desert is a large dry lake in northern Utah between the Great Salt Lake and the Nevada border which is noted for white sand from evaporite Lake Bonneville salt deposits...
. Signatures in axle grease on rock faces can be seen today. One emigrant saw the distant rocks in August like "water thrown up into the air from numerous artificial hydrants." Beginning in 1843, City of Rocks was a landmark for emigrants on the California Trail
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
and Salt Lake Alternate Trail
Salt Lake Cutoff
The Salt Lake Cutoff is one of the many shortcuts that branched from the California, Mormon and Oregon Trails in the United States. It led northwest out of Salt Lake City, Utah and north of the Great Salt Lake for about before rejoining the California trail near the City of Rocks, Idaho...
and later on freight routes and the Kelton, Utah
Kelton, Utah
-External links:* by Randy W. Lewis* at Utah State History...
to Boise, Idaho
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...
stage route.
The area's historical and geological values, scenery, and opportunities for recreation led to its designation as City of Rocks National Reserve in 1988. This unit of the National Park System is managed cooperatively by the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
and the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation.
Native American history
The ShoshoneShoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
and Bannock
Bannock (tribe)
The Bannock tribe of the Northern Paiute are an indigenous people of the Great Basin. Their traditional lands include southeastern Oregon, southeastern Idaho, western Wyoming, and southwestern Montana...
tribes hunted the buffalo
American Bison
The American bison , also commonly known as the American buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed the grasslands of North America in massive herds...
that once roamed in the City of Rocks area and gathered the nuts of the pinyon pine trees. The arrival of horses in the Americas in the 16th century and swelling European immigration disrupted the Shoshone-Bannock homelands and traditional way of life. They grew to resent the intruders but could do little to stop them. Most emigrants on the California Trail saw no Native Americans, but some of their journals record smoke rising from high hills and the surrounding mountains.
In 1826, Peter Skene Ogden
Peter Skene Ogden
Peter Skene Ogden , was a fur trader and a Canadian explorer of what is now British Columbia and the American West...
and his Snake River brigade of beaver trappers were the first Euro-Americans to note the City of Rocks. Having few beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
, the area was ignored until 1843, when growing streams of wagons began flowing through the area in the summer.
California Trail
Joseph Chiles
Colonel Joseph Ballinger Chiles was an early California pioneer and guide.Born in Kentucky, Chiles moved to Missouri around 1830 and fought for the United States Army in the Seminole Wars. Widowed, he abandoned his children to join the Bartleson-Bidwell Party of 1841, the first wagon train to...
and Joseph R. Walker. Later wagon parties followed the trails themselves, perhaps with the help of diary accounts of previous emigrants. The City of Rocks marked progress west for the emigrants and, for their loaded wagons, a mountain passage over nearby Granite Pass. By 1846, emigrants headed for Oregon's Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
also used this route as part of the Applegate Trail
Applegate Trail
The Applegate Trail was a wilderness trail through today's U.S. states of Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon, and was originally intended as a less dangerous route to the Oregon Territory.-Background:...
. In 1848 Samuel J. Hensley pioneered the Salt Lake Alternate Trail from Salt Lake City via Emigrant Canyon to Granite Pass. In 1852, some 52,000 people passed through the City of Rocks on their way to the California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
goldfields.
When the trails opened in the 1840s, Granite Pass was in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and less than a mile from Oregon Territory
Oregon Territory
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries , the region was...
. After 1850 the Pass became part of Utah Territory
Utah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
, and in 1872 an Idaho-Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
boundary survey error placed Granite Pass in Idaho Territory
Idaho Territory
The Territory of Idaho was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 4, 1863, until July 3, 1890, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Idaho.-1860s:...
. With completion of the transcontinental railroad
Transcontinental railroad
A transcontinental railroad is a contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single railroad, or over those owned or controlled by multiple railway companies...
in 1869, the overland wagon routes began to pass into history. However, wagons saw continued use on regional supply routes that spread out from the railroad lines.
John Halley's stage route connected the railroad at Kelton, Utah
Kelton, Utah
-External links:* by Randy W. Lewis* at Utah State History...
, with Idaho's mining hub of Boise, Idaho
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...
, and supplied the early economic development
Economic development
Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...
of Idaho, which won statehood
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
in 1890. The Kelton stage route passed through the City of Rocks, with a stage station set up near the junction of the old California Trail and the Salt Lake Alternate. Settlers began to homestead the City of Rocks area in the late 19th century. Dryland farming declined during the drought years of the 1920s and 1930s, but ranching survived. Livestock grazing began with early wagon use of the area in the mid-19th century and continues today.
Facts and designations
The Idaho LegislatureIdaho Legislature
The Idaho Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Idaho. It consists of the upper Idaho Senate and the lower Idaho House of Representatives. The Idaho Senate contains 35 Senators, who are elected from 35 districts...
declared Section 36 within City of Rocks as a state park under the jurisdiction of the Idaho Lands Board on February 27, 1957. In 1964, a much larger area was designated a national historic landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
. On March 15, 1973, Section 36 was transferred to the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation from the Department of Lands. The following year, the area was designated a national natural landmark
National Natural Landmark
The National Natural Landmark program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only natural areas program of national scope that identifies and recognizes the best examples of biological and geological features in...
. The National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
studied the site in the 1970s and 80s as a proposed national monument
National monument
A National monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of national importance such as a war or the country's founding. The term may also refer to a specific monument status, such as a National Heritage Site, which most national monuments are by reason of their cultural...
.
City of Rocks National Reserve was created November 18, 1988 by Public Law 100-696, Arizona-Idaho Conservation Act of 1988. This Act drew a 22 miles (35.4 km) boundary around 14407 acres (58.3 km²) owned or managed by the USDA Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
, Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation (IDPR), and private individuals. All lands owned by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
within the Reserve boundaries were placed under the authority of the National Park Service (NPS). Between 1988 and 1996, the Reserve was co-managed by both NPS and IDPR. After the approval of a comprehensive management plan, the NPS officially transferred on-site management of the Reserve to IDPR on May 2, 1996. Today, the park functions under a unique cooperative agreement between the NPS and IDPR. Both agencies allocate partial funding to its operation. City of Rocks National Reserve is visited annually by over 80,000 visitors. The Reserve headquarters is located in the gateway community of Almo
Almo, Idaho
Almo is a very small unincorporated town in Cassia County, Idaho, United States. It is a short distance away from the City of Rocks National Reserve, a area with granite columns as much as high. Almo is renowned for its scenic, historic and geologic significance. Almo was established around a...
.
Environment
City of Rocks, an extraordinary encirclement of granite rising out of the gently rolling sagebrushSagebrush
Sagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...
country in south-central Idaho, has attracted and intrigued people since they first entered this region. The Shoshone
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
camped here as did the emigrants traveling along the California Trail. One of the reserve's most notable qualities is its large degree of biological diversity concentrated in a relatively small area. The great variety of textures, colors, and shapes in the natural landscape
Natural landscape
A natural landscape is a landscape that is unaffected by human activity. A natural landscape is intact when all living and nonliving elements are free to move and change. The nonliving elements distinguish a natural landscape from a wilderness. A wilderness includes areas within which natural...
contributes considerably to the reserve's scenic quality.
Geologic formations
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
that was intruded into the crust during two widely spaced times. The granite that composes most of the spires is part of the 28 million year old Almo pluton. However, some of the spires are made of granite that is part of the 2.5 billion year old Green Creek Complex that contains some of the oldest rocks in the western United States. The granite has eroded into a fascinating assortment of shapes.
City of Rocks was designated a National Reserve, a unit of the National Park Service, in recognition of the nationally significant geological and scenic values of its rock formations and the historical significance of the California Trail. Rock formations in the reserve developed through an erosion process called exfoliation
Exfoliation (geology)
Exfoliation joints or sheet joints are surface-parallel fracture systems in rock often leading to erosion of concentric slabs.- General characteristics of exfoliation joints :* Commonly follow topography ....
, during which thin rock plates and scales sloughed off along joints in the rocks. The joints, or fractures, resulted from the contraction of the granite as it cooled, from upward expansion of the granite as overlying materials were eroded away, and from regional tectonic stresses. The granite has eroded into a fascinating assortment of shapes as high as 600 feet (182.9 m). The upper surfaces of many of the rocks are covered with flat-floored weathering pits known as panholes. The most notable panhole is located on top of Bath Rock and is continuously filled with water from rain or snow melt.
Animals
Located in the Northern Basin and RangeNorthern Basin and Range (ecoregion)
The Northern Basin and Range ecoregion is a Level III ecoregion designated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S. states of Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and California. It contains dissected lava plains, rolling hills, alluvial fans, valleys, and scattered mountain ranges...
/Snake-Columbia shrub steppe ecoregions and the Raft Watershed of the Upper Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
Basin, the habitat of the reserve supports a large variety of mammals, birds, reptiles, and invertebrates.
- Amphibians - Common amphibians that could be found near water include Boreal Toad, Great Basin Spadefoot ToadGreat Basin SpadefootThe Great Basin Spadefoot is a species of toad in the Scaphiopodidae family.- Identification :The Great Basin Spadefoot ranges from 3.8 to 6.3 cm long. It is usually gray, olive, or brown colored. Gray streaks outline an hourglass shaped marking on the back. The skin is smooth compared with...
, and Northern Leopard FrogNorthern Leopard FrogThe Northern Leopard Frog is a species of leopard frog from the true frog family, native to parts of Canada and United States. It is the state amphibian of Minnesota and Vermont.-Physical description:...
. - Birds - The reserve provides excellent breeding and prey habitat for many raptorBird of preyBirds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....
species including Golden EagleGolden EagleThe Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...
, Prairie FalconPrairie FalconThe Prairie Falcon is a medium-sized falcon of western North America.It is about the size of a Peregrine Falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm , wingspan of 1 metre , and weight of 720 g...
, Red-tailed HawkRed-tailed HawkThe Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...
, Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned HawkSharp-shinned HawkThe Sharp-shinned Hawk is a small hawk. In fact, "sharp-shins" or "sharpies" are the smallest to reside in USA and Canada, though some Neotropical species are smaller...
, Cooper's HawkCooper's HawkCooper's Hawk is a medium-sized hawk native to the North American continent and found from Canada to Mexico. As in many birds of prey, the male is smaller than the female...
, American KestrelAmerican KestrelThe American Kestrel , sometimes colloquially known as the Sparrow Hawk, is a small falcon, and the only kestrel found in the Americas. It is the most common falcon in North America, and is found in a wide variety of habitats. At long, it is also the smallest falcon in North America...
, Turkey VultureTurkey VultureThe Turkey Vulture is a bird found throughout most of the Americas. It is also known in some North American regions as the Turkey Buzzard , and in some areas of the Caribbean as the John Crow or Carrion Crow...
, and Great Horned OwlGreat Horned OwlThe Great Horned Owl, , also known as the Tiger Owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas.-Description:...
. Swainson's HawkSwainson's HawkThe Swainson's Hawk , is a large buteo hawk of the Falconiformes, sometimes separated in the Accipitriformes like its relatives. This species was named after William Swainson, a British naturalist...
and Ferruginous HawkFerruginous HawkThe Ferruginous Hawk , Buteo regalis , is a large bird of prey. It is not a true hawk like sparrowhawks or goshawks, but rather belongs to the broad-winged buteo hawks, known as "buzzards" in Europe...
are less abundant in the reserve. Other common bird species includes Sage GrouseSage GrouseThe Sage Grouse is the largest grouse in North America, where it is known as the Greater Sage-Grouse. Its range is sagebrush country in the western United States and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. A population of smaller birds, known in the U.S. as Gunnison Sage-Grouse, were recently...
, Pinon Jay, Clark's NutcrackerClark's NutcrackerClark's Nutcracker , sometimes referred to as Clark's Crow or Woodpecker Crow, is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae. It is slightly smaller than its Eurasian relative the Spotted Nutcracker . It is ashy-grey all over except for the black-and-white wings and central tail feathers...
, Common NighthawkCommon NighthawkThe Common Nighthawk is a medium-sized crepuscular or nocturnal bird, whose presence and identity are best revealed by its vocalization. Typically dark , displaying cryptic colouration and intricate patterns, this bird becomes invisible by day. Once aerial, with its buoyant but erratic flight,...
, Rock Doves, Mourning DoveMourning DoveThe Mourning Dove is a member of the dove family . The bird is also called the Turtle Dove or the American Mourning Dove or Rain Dove, and formerly was known as the Carolina Pigeon or Carolina Turtledove. It is one of the most abundant and widespread of all North American birds...
s, Cliff SwallowCliff SwallowThe Cliff Swallow is a member of the passerine bird family Hirundinidae — the swallows and martins.It breeds in North America, and is migratory, wintering in western South America from Venezuela southwards to northeast Argentina...
, Mountain BluebirdMountain BluebirdThe Mountain Bluebird is a medium-sized bird weighing about 2-5 ounces, with a length from 15–20 cm . They have light underbellies and black eyes. Adult males have thin bills are bright turquoise-blue and somewhat lighter beneath. Adult females have duller blue wings and tail, grey breast,...
, Hermit ThrushHermit ThrushThe Hermit Thrush is a medium-sized North American thrush. It is not very closely related to the other North American migrant species of Catharus, but rather to the Mexican Russet Nightingale-thrush.-Description:...
, Mountain ChickadeeMountain ChickadeeThe Mountain Chickadee is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. Often, it is still placed in the genus Parus with most other tits, but mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data and morphology suggest that separating Poecile more adequately expresses these birds' relationships...
, Rock WrenRock WrenThe Rock Wren is a small songbird of the wren family. It is the only species in the genus Salpinctes.The 12 cm long adults have grey-brown upperparts with small black and white spots and pale grey underparts with a light brown rump...
, House WrenHouse WrenThe House Wren, Troglodytes aedon, is a very small songbird of the wren family, Troglodytidae. It occurs from Canada to southernmost South America, and is thus the most widely distributed bird in the Americas. It occurs in most suburban areas in its range and it is the single most common wren...
, Solitary VireoSolitary Vireo"Solitary Vireo" is a collective term for certain vireos. These were formerly believed to make up a single species Vireo solitarius, but are now treated as three allopatric species:...
s, Warbling VireoWarbling VireoThe Warbling Vireo, Vireo gilvus, is a small North American songbird.Its breeding habitat is open deciduous and mixed woods from Alaska to Mexico and the Florida Panhandle. It often nests along streams. It migrates to Mexico and Central America....
s, Green-tailed TowheeTowheeA towhee is any one of a number of species of birds in the genus Pipilo or Melozone within the family Emberizidae ....
, Virginia's WarblerVirginia's WarblerVirginia's Warbler is a species of New World warbler.Despite what its name may suggest, Virginia's warbler is not actually named after the American State of Virginia, which makes sense as the birds range only reaches as far east as the state of Texas...
, Brewer's BlackbirdBrewer's BlackbirdThe Brewer's Blackbird is a medium-sized New World blackbird, named after the ornithologist Thomas Mayo Brewer....
, and various SparrowSparrowThe sparrows are a family of small passerine birds, Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, or Old World sparrows, names also used for a genus of the family, Passer...
s. - Mammals - A partial list of mammals in the reserve includes, Mountain Lion, Mule DeerMule DeerThe mule deer is a deer indigenous to western North America. The Mule Deer gets its name from its large mule-like ears. There are believed to be several subspecies, including the black-tailed deer...
, CoyoteCoyoteThe coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...
, BobcatBobcatThe bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...
, BadgerBadgerBadgers are short-legged omnivores in the weasel family, Mustelidae. There are nine species of badger, in three subfamilies : Melinae , Mellivorinae , and Taxideinae...
, , Yellow-bellied marmotYellow-bellied MarmotThe yellow-bellied marmot , also known as the rock chuck, is a ground squirrel in the marmot genus.-Description:...
, Cliff ChipmunkCliff ChipmunkThe cliff chipmunk is a small, bushy-tailed squirrel that typically lives along cliff walls or boulder fields bordering Pinyon-juniper woodlands in the Western United States and Mexico. Cliff chipmunks are very agile, and can often be seen scaling steep cliff walls. Cliff chipmunks do not amass...
, Mountain Cottontail RabbitMountain CottontailThe Mountain Cottontail or Nuttall's Cottontail is a species of mammal in the Leporidae family. It is found in Canada and the United States.- Description :...
, , Black-tailed JackrabbitBlack-tailed JackrabbitThe black-tailed jackrabbit , also known as the american desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level to up to...
, Snowshoe HareSnowshoe HareThe Snowshoe Hare , also called the Varying Hare, or Snowshoe Rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet and the marks its tail leaves. The animal's feet prevent it from sinking into the snow when it hops and walks...
, Northern Grasshopper Mouse, Merriam ShrewShrewA shrew or shrew mouse is a small molelike mammal classified in the order Soricomorpha. True shrews are also not to be confused with West Indies shrews, treeshrews, otter shrews, or elephant shrews, which belong to different families or orders.Although its external appearance is generally that of...
, several species of voles, and a variety of batBatBats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
s. Pronghorn antelope and bisonBisonMembers of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...
were probably common a century ago. - Reptiles - Typical lizard species include the western whiptail, western fence lizardWestern fence lizardThe western fence lizard is a common lizard of California and the surrounding area. Because the ventral abdomen of an adult is characteristically blue, it is also known as the blue-belly...
, Long-nosed leopard LizardLeopard LizardThe Long-nosed leopard Lizard, Gambelia wislizenii, is a relatively large lizard ranging from 3 1/4-5 3/4 inches . It has a large head, long nose, and a long round tail that can be longer than its body...
, Sagebrush Lizard, and Northern Desert Horned LizardNorthern Desert Horned LizardThe northern desert horned lizard is a subspecies of the desert horned lizard. It is often referred to as a "horny toad" due to its wide body and blunt snout, but it is not a toad.-Description:...
. Snakes include the Western RattlesnakeRattlesnakeRattlesnakes are a group of venomous snakes of the genera Crotalus and Sistrurus of the subfamily Crotalinae . There are 32 known species of rattlesnake, with between 65-70 subspecies, all native to the Americas, ranging from southern Alberta and southern British Columbia in Canada to Central...
, Great Basin Gopher SnakePituophis catenifer deserticolaThe Great Basin Gopher Snake is a species of small colubrid snake native to the western part of the United States. The Great Basin Gopher Snake can be found all over the west including some areas of Canada and Mexico...
, Striped WhipsnakeStriped WhipsnakeThe Striped Whipsnake is a species of nonvenomous colubrid snake that is closely related to the California Whipsnake . It is native to the western United States and northern Mexico....
, and Wandering Garter Snake. The Western Rattlesnake is the only strongly venomed snake found in the reserve.
Plants
- The Kruckeberg's sword fern is found in the cool, moist micro-habitats in the granite formations. The fern grows in rock crevices and is normally found at higher elevations than City of Rocks. Primary threats to this species are trampling and or removal by visitors along rockclimbing routes.
- Stands of piñonPinyon pineThe pinyon pine group grows in the southwestern United States and in Mexico. The trees yield edible pinyon nuts, which were a staple of the Native Americans, and are still widely eaten...
/juniperJuniperJunipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
woodlands are dominated by the single-leaf piñon pine and Utah juniper, interspersed with mountain big sagebrush and curl-leaf mountain mahogany. The pinon seed is edible and gathered by local residents. Higher slopes are covered with mountain big sagebrush, snowberry, serviceberryServiceberryAmelanchier , also known as shadbush, shadwood or shadblow, serviceberry or sarvisberry, wild pear, juneberry, saskatoon, sugarplum or wild-plum, and chuckley pear is a genus of about 20 species of deciduous-leaved shrubs and small trees in the Rose family .Amelanchier is native to temperate regions...
, and bitterbrush, with other shrubs, grasses, and herbs growing in the openings between shrubs. Groves of aspenAspenPopulus section Populus, of the Populus genus, includes the aspen trees and the white poplar Populus alba. The five typical aspens are all native to cold regions with cool summers, in the north of the Northern Hemisphere, extending south at high altitudes in the mountains. The White Poplar, by...
, stands of douglas-firDouglas-firDouglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...
and lodgepole pineLodgepole PineLodgepole Pine, Pinus contorta, also known as Shore Pine, is a common tree in western North America. Like all pines, it is evergreen.-Subspecies:...
, are located on the upper stony / grassy slopes of the reserve. Quaking aspen groves occur in canyons containing streams.
Other dominant plants in the City of Rocks National Reserve include:
- PiñonPinyon pineThe pinyon pine group grows in the southwestern United States and in Mexico. The trees yield edible pinyon nuts, which were a staple of the Native Americans, and are still widely eaten...
/ juniperJuniperJunipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
woodlands and forest - Conifer / aspenAspenPopulus section Populus, of the Populus genus, includes the aspen trees and the white poplar Populus alba. The five typical aspens are all native to cold regions with cool summers, in the north of the Northern Hemisphere, extending south at high altitudes in the mountains. The White Poplar, by...
woodlands and forests - Riparian scrub and herbaceousHerbaceousA herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
wetlands - Big sagebrushSagebrushSagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...
and grasslands - Mixed scrub
- Mountain mahogany scrubs
- High elevation meadows
- Other unvegetated areas
Weather
The semi-arid climate is characterized by low to moderate precipitation, great extremes in both daily and seasonal temperatures, and low relative humidityRelative humidity
Relative humidity is a term used to describe the amount of water vapor in a mixture of air and water vapor. It is defined as the partial pressure of water vapor in the air-water mixture, given as a percentage of the saturated vapor pressure under those conditions...
. Average annual precipitation is approximately 14 inches (355.6 mm) at the lower elevations and 22 inches (558.8 mm) in the highest areas. Average snow depths for higher elevations range between 35 and 68 inches (1.7 m). Summers are hot and dry with occasional thunderstorms.
Mountains
The reserve is in the southern part of the Albion Mountains, bordered on the east by the Raft RiverRaft River
The Raft River is a tributary of the Snake River located in northern Utah and southern Idaho in the United States. It is part of the Columbia River Basin.-Course:...
valley and to the north by the Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
valley. Elevations rise from 5650 feet (1,722.1 m) where Circle Creek meets the reserve boundary to 8867 feet (2,702.7 m) at the top of Graham Peak
Graham Peak
Graham Peak is a peak about 7 nautical miles east of Mount Riiser-Larsen in the northwest part of the Tula Mountains in Enderby Land. It was plotted from air photos taken from ANARE aircraft in 1956, and was named by the Antarctic Names Committee of Australia for N. Graham, a cook at Wilkes...
to the north.
Soils
The majority of the soils in the reserve are composed of grus, a coarse angular sand derived from the disintegration of the underlying granitic bedrock. They are highly erodible. Soil erosion is greatest near roads and on steep slopes and intermittent stream channels. Erosion in these areas has formed deep gullies. Some of the exposed soil banks are over 8 feet (2.4 m) high.External links
- City of Rocks National Reserve from the National Park Service
- City of Rocks National Reserve from the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation