Death Valley is the hottest and driest places in North America, yet it is home to over 1000 species of plants and 440 species of animals. The Park encompasses over three million acres and ranges in elevation from 282 feet below sea level to 11,049 feet above sea level. This provides a variety of habitats in which plants and animals have become established. Although most of Death Valley’s plant and animal species can be found growing in other places, there are a few that exist only in the Death Valley region and nowhere else in the world. These are referred to as “endemic” to the area.
Plants: Class I Endemics
Found only within the boundaries of Death Valley National Park
- Shining Milkvetch (Astragalus lentiginosus var. micans)
- Napkin Ring Buckwheat (Eriogonum intrafractum)
- Panamint Mountains Bedstraw (Galium hilendiae ssp. carneum)
- Telescope Peak Bedstraw (Galium hypotrichium ssp. tomentellum)
- Golden Carpet (Gilmania luteola)
- Panamint Monkeyflower (Mimulus bigelovii var. panamintensis)
- Death Valley Monkeyflower (Mimulus rupicola)
- Eureka Dunes Evening Primrose (Oenothera californica ssp. eurekensis)
- Hanaupah Rock Daisy (Perityle villosa)
- Eureka Valley Dune Grass (Swallenia alexandrae)
- Holly-leaved Spurge (Tetracoccus ilicifolius)
Plants: Class II Endemics
Plants with the majority of their range within Death Valley National Park
- Death Valley Sticky Ring (Anulocaulis annulatus)
- Darwin Mesa Milkvetch (Astragalus atratus var. mensanus)
- Black Milkvetch (Astragalus funereus)
- Gilman’s Milkvetch (Astragalus gilmanii)
- Sodaville Milkvetch (Astragalus lentiginosus var. sesquimetralis)
- Heart-leaved Evening Primrose (Camissonia cardiophylla ssp. robusta)
- Death Valley Brown-eyed Evening Primrose (Camissonia claviformis ssp. funerea)
- Desert Bird’s-beak (Cordylanthus eremicus ssp. eremicus)
- Gilman’s Cymopterus (Cymopterus gilmanii)
- July Gold (Dedeckera eurekensis)
- Rock Lady (Maurandya petrophila)
- Panamint Liveforever (Dudleya saxosa ssp. saxosa)
- Panamint Daisy (Enceliopsis covillei)
- Limestone Daisy (Erigeron uncialis var. uncialis)
- Wildrose Canyon Buckwheat (Eriogonum eremicola)
- Gilman’s Buckwheat (Eriogonum gilmanii)
- Hoffmann’s Buckwheat (Eriogonum hoffmannii var. hoffmanii)
- Robust Hoffmann’s Buckwheat Eriogonum hoffmannii var. robustius)
- Rixford’s Buckwheat (Eriogonum rixfordii)
- Bullfrog Hills Wild Pea (Lathyrus hitchcockianus)
- Holmgren’s Lupine (Lupinus holmgrenanus)
- Panamint Mountains Lupine (Lupinus magnificus var. magnificus)
- Coville’s Purple Mat (Nama demissum var. covillei)
- Limestone Beardtongue (Penstemon calcareus)
- Death Valley Beardtongue (Penstemon fruticiformis var. amargosae)
- Death Valley Sandpaper Plant (Petalonyx thurberi ssp. gilmanii)
- Dwarf Ninebark (Physocarpus alternans ssp. panamintensis)
- Death Valley Sage (Salvia funerea)
- Death Valley Sibara (Sibara rosulata)
- Death Valley Blue-eyed-grass (Sisyrinchium funereum)
- Death Valley Goldeneye (Viguiera reticulata)
Animals: Death Valley Endemics
Only found within the boundaries of Death Valley National Park.
- Devil’s Hole Pupfish (Cyprinodon diabolis)
- Cottonball Marsh Pupfish (Cyprinodon milleri)
- Saratoga Spring Pupfish (Cyprinodon nevadensis nevadensis)
- Salt Creek Pupfish (Cyprinodon salinus)
- Beetles
- Cardiophorus sp.
- Horistonotus sp. endemic to Eureka Dunes
- Aegialis sp.
- Edrotes sp.
- Snails: 15 species of snails have been found only in park waters:
- Assimnea spp.
- Fontelicella spp.
- Tryonia spp.
Animals: Regional Endemics
Restricted to Death Valley and surrounding counties
- Amargosa Pupfish (Cyprinodon nevadensis amargosae)
- Panamint Kangaroo Rat (Dipodomys panamintinus panamintinus)
- Panamint Alligator Lizard (Gerrhonotus panamintinus)
- Pygmy Pocket Gopher (Thomomys umbrinus oreocus)
- Panamint Pocket Gopher (Thomomys umbrinus scapterus)
