No federally listed threatened or endangered plant or animal species are known to occur in Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. Several plants and animals, however, are considered “species of concern” by the Arizona Game and Fish Department and their status is regularly assessed.
There are two plants species of concern: Penstemon clutei (the Sunset Crater penstemon) and Phacelia serrata (cinders phacelia). Both are short-lived wildflowers that are found only on cinder deposits. P. clutei is found only within the San Francisco Volcanic Field, and P. serrata is found here at Sunset Crater and at El Malpais National Monument in New Mexico.
Both of these plants grow in many locations within Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, including the popular Lava Flow Trail and around the visitor center. P. clutei seems to be well adapted to fire – its seedlings sprout quickly after forest fires.
One bird species of concern, the northern goshawk, is known to live nearby in Coconino National Forest. These birds are found across much of the United States and southern Canada in a wide variety of habitats. In Arizona, goshawks tend to prefer stands of large ponderosa pine trees surrounded by forest. Conditions are probably not right for nesting within the monument, but northern goshawks may fly into the monument in search of prey.
In addition to sensitive species, three unique habitats have been identified within the monument’s volcanic landscape: pioneering vegetation stands isolated in the middle of the lava flows, vegetation islands on deep cinder deposits, and the lower perimeter of lava flows where water may collect. Studies of these areas may reveal secrets of the ecological processes that allow pioneer plants to move into harsh habitats and begin the long, slow process of transforming them into habitat for the other species that follow.