Nature

 

"The purpose of Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument is to preserve, protect, memorialize, and interpret the cultural and natural resources, including landscape, pertaining to the Battle of the Little Bighorn"….-Little Bighorn National Monument Foundation Document.

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument is more than a battlefield and monuments. The park's 765 acres are situated between true grasslands and the shrub-steppe ecosystem of the intermountain west. This integration of habitat types allows more species to coexist in a very dynamic landscape.

Volcanism, uplift, erosion and other geologic forces have determined the topography and soils at the battlefield. Advancing and retreating glaciers further transformed the landscape while cooling and warming conditions created new possibilities for life. Through ecological succession (the gradual process by which ecosystems change and develop over time), the natural appearance of the landscape and historic battlefield have changed, but remain similar to how it looked in 1876.

We invite you to explore Little Bighorn Battlefield's natural resources in person, or on these pages:

 
  • Great Plains Toad
    Amphibians

    Learn about our cold blooded friends!

  • The milky way stretches out over the Reno-Benteen defense site.
    Night Sky

    Learn more about the night sky, and what the NPS is doing to protect it.

  • Little Bighorn Battlefield grassland
    Wildland Fire

    Learn about what fire does, and why it is important to the health of the grasslands within the battlefield.

 

Last updated: March 13, 2023

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Mailing Address:

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument
P.O. Box 39

Crow Agency, MT 59022-0039

Phone:

(406) 638-3236

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