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Learn the wildlife of the U.S. national parks

Learn the wildlife of Mesa Verde National Park

CO

559 species have research-grade observations inside Mesa Verde National Park on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, so you know what you're looking at before you go.

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Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay Aphelocoma woodhouseii123
  2. Spotted Towhee Pipilo maculatus73
  3. Common Raven Corvus corax65
  4. Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura58
  5. Green-tailed Towhee Pipilo chlorurus53
  6. Mountain Bluebird Sialia currucoides43
  7. Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo36
  8. Western Bluebird Sialia mexicana33
  9. Chipping Sparrow Spizella passerina26
  10. Black-headed Grosbeak Pheucticus melanocephalus21

Plants

  1. Banana Yucca Yucca baccata189
  2. Gambel Oak Quercus gambelii159
  3. Rubber Rabbitbrush Ericameria nauseosa154
  4. Colorado Pinyon Pinus edulis149
  5. Firecracker penstemon Penstemon eatonii139
  6. Cliff Fendlerbush Fendlera rupicola132
  7. Kingcup Cactus Echinocereus triglochidiatus130
  8. Scarlet Globemallow Sphaeralcea coccinea119
  9. Alderleaf Mountain Mahogany Cercocarpus montanus118
  10. Plains Pricklypear Opuntia polyacantha97

Mammals

  1. Mule Deer Odocoileus hemionus143
  2. Rock Squirrel Otospermophilus variegatus62
  3. Domestic Horse Equus caballus44
  4. American Black Bear Ursus americanus28
  5. Coyote Canis latrans22
  6. Desert Cottontail Sylvilagus audubonii7
  7. Hopi Chipmunk Neotamias rufus6
  8. Gunnison's Prairie Dog Cynomys gunnisoni5
  9. Wapiti Cervus canadensis5
  10. Bobcat Lynx rufus4

Insects

  1. Obscure Darkling Beetle Eleodes obscura27
  2. Cotton-gall Tephritid Aciurina bigeloviae19
  3. Dasymutilla vestita18
  4. Weidemeyer's Admiral Limenitis weidemeyerii16
  5. Juniper Hairstreak Callophrys gryneus13
  6. Melissa Blue Plebejus melissa13
  7. Hunt's Bumble Bee Bombus huntii11
  8. Red-shanked Grasshopper Xanthippus corallipes11
  9. Common Checkered-Skipper Burnsius communis11
  10. Checkered White Pontia protodice10

Spiders and kin

  1. Grand Canyon Black Tarantula Aphonopelma marxi43
  2. Western Black Widow Latrodectus hesperus4
  3. Desert Red Jumping Spider Phidippus ardens2
  4. Phidippus asotus2
  5. Aceria trichophila2
  6. Hirsute Paradise Spider Habronattus hirsutus1
  7. Northern Scorpion Paruroctonus boreus1

Reptiles

  1. Common Sagebrush Lizard Sceloporus graciosus212
  2. Plateau Fence Lizard Sceloporus tristichus182
  3. Eastern Collared Lizard Crotaphytus collaris136
  4. Plateau Striped Whiptail Aspidoscelis velox115
  5. Greater Short-horned Lizard Phrynosoma hernandesi67
  6. Gopher Snake Pituophis catenifer39
  7. Ornate Tree Lizard Urosaurus ornatus21
  8. Prairie Rattlesnake Crotalus viridis13
  9. Common Side-blotched Lizard Uta stansburiana10
  10. Striped Whipsnake Masticophis taeniatus6

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

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Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. KnowKi is not affiliated with the National Park Service. Free, with no ads, no account and no purchases.