Wildlife!

Although located in a mostly arid desert, there is abundant wildlife within the parks ecosystem. The Petrified Forest hosts 258 beautiful bird species. Along with birds the park is home to 16 varieties of reptiles and snakes, 8 species of amphibians, 36 species of mammals, and finally a massive amount of invertebrates including Tarantula spiders! Due to the heat of the day, many animals have adapted to a nocturnal lifestyle making the best time to view wildlife being the crack of dawn.

Plant life!

The Petrified Forest is home to cactuses, trees, shrubs, wildflowers, grasses, reeds, mosses, ferns, and lichens. Plant life contributes to the ecosystem by catching dust particles, producing oxygen, and providing shelter for animals. The native Plants have evolved to be able to grow in a climate that is often subject to drought. Many of the plants in the park produce seeds that remain dormant until its growing conditions are favorable, thus waiting out droughts. Plants such as cactuses have features that allow them to survive long periods of drought, for example some plants drop leaves when there is not enough water to support them and moss can survive after being completely dehydrated

Paleontology

Paleontology is one of the main natural sciences of Petrified Forest National Park because the park contains some of the best exposed continuous sections of Triassic aged rock. This rock was deposited 208-228 million years ago by massive rivers. The fossils are mostly ancient Archosaurs (bird and crocodilian ancestors). On September 28 2022 the paleontology program at Petrified Forest National park announced their discovery of a new Triassic reptile that they will be naming Puercosuchus traverorum. The fossils were first found on a girl scout guided hike in 2014 near the Blue Mesa Area.