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      Seclusion
and limited travel corridors help preserve the outstanding biological
resources within Grand Canyon Parashant National Monument. The monument
is a junction of two physiographic ecoregions – the Mojave Desert
and Colorado Plateau. These regions contain ecosystems extreme to each
other, ranging from stark, arid desert to complex, dramatic higher elevation
plateaus. |
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The western margin of the Shivwits Plateau marks the boundary between the Sonoran/Mojave/GreatBasin floristic provinces to the west and south, and the Colorado Plateau province to the northeast. This intersection of these biomes is a distinctive and remarkable feature. Riparian corridors link the plateau to the Colorado River Corridor below, allowing wildlife movement and plant dispersal. The Shivwits Plateau’s arid environment, between 14 to 18 inches of precipitation a year, encourages forests of Giant MojaveYucca. Diverse wildlife inhabit the monument, including a trophy-quality mule deer herd, pronghorn, Kaibab squirrels, and wild turkey. There are numerous threatened or endangered species as well, including the Mexican spotted owl, California condor, desert tortoise, and the Southwestern willow flycatcher. There are also candidate or sensitive species, including the spotted bat, western mastiff bat, Townsend’s big eared bat, and the goshawk, as well as two federally recognized sensitive rare plant species: Penstemon distans and Rosa stellata. The ponderosa pine ecosystem in the Mt. Trumbull area is a biological resource of scientific interest. The area is being studied to gain important insights regarding dendroclimatic reconstruction, fire history, forest structures change, biological diversity of the ponderosa pine ecosystem, and long-term stability of pre-settlement pine groups.
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