Habitat/Wildlife
 There has been no comprehensive survey of wildlife or vegetation in Spearfish Canyon. Both the Corridor Management Plan (1999) and Landscape Assessment (2002) recognize the need and recommend survey work to understand and enhance the canyon landscape.
Through the convergence of four biomes (plant communities from the Northern Great Plains Grass Region, the Rocky Mountain Forest Region, the Northern Forest Region, and the Eastern Forest Region) in Spearfish Canyon, the culmination effect is a broad wildlife population. Many species have been lost to the canyon scene like the Wolf, Black bear, and Grizzly bear. Some other species are in peril. Wildlife issues are predominantly within the jurisdiction of the South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks Department. State policy, typically, does not encourage introduction of species, but rather re-establishing habitat to encourage the return of the species.
The most unique avian to the canyon landscape is the American Dipper. It is at its most easterly migration, typically found in the Rockies and Sierras. The bird is continuously studied with habitat improvements by the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department. Click for up-to-date Dipper information from the South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks Department
Presented here is a partial list of surveys conducted in the Black Hills National Forest.
Birds |
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American Crow |
Pine Siskin |
American Dipper |
Prairie Falcon |
American Goldfinch |
Rock Dove |
American Redstart |
Rock Wren |
American Robin |
Ruby-crowned Kinglet |
Belted Kingfisher |
Ruffed Grouse |
Black-billed Magpie |
Rufous-sided Towhee |
Black-capped Chickadee |
Sapsucker: |
Brewer's Blackbird |
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Red-naped Sapsucker |
Common Yellowthroat |
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Yellow-bellied Sapsucker |
Dark-eyed Junco |
Sparrow: |
European Starling |
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American Tree Sparrow |
Eagle: |
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Chipping Sparrow |
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Bald Eagle |
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House Sparrow |
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Golden Eagle |
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Song Sparrow |
Flycatcher: |
Swallow: |
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Dusky Flycatcher |
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Cliff Swallow |
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Least Flycatcher |
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Tree Swallow |
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Olive-sided Flycatcher |
Turkey Vulture |
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Western Flycatcher |
Warbler: |
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Willow Flycatcher |
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Orange-crowned Warbler |
Great Horned Owl |
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MacGillvary's Warbler |
Hawk: |
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Tennessee Warbler |
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Cooper's Hawk |
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Yellow-romped Warbler |
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Red-tailed Hawk |
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Yellow Warbler |
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Sharp-shinned Hawk |
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Wilson's Warbler |
House Finch |
Western Wood-pewee |
Mallard |
White-breasted Nuthatch |
Mourning Dove |
White-throated Swift |
Northern Flicker |
Wild Turkey |
Northern Oriole |
Woodpecker: |
Ovenbird |
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Downy Woodpecker |
Phoebe: |
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Hairy Woodpecker |
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Eastern Phoebe |
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Say's Phoebe |
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Wildflowers |
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Alfalfa |
Holly Grape |
American Vetch |
Hounds-Tongue |
Arnica |
Liverworts |
Bedstraw |
Meadow Anemone |
Bergamot |
Meadow Rose |
Bicknell Geranium |
Monk's Hood |
Black-eyed Susan |
Mountain Thistle |
Bluebell |
Mullein: |
Butter-and-Eggs |
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Common Mullein |
Catnip |
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Yellow Mullein |
Clover |
Nettle: |
Common Burdock |
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Marsh Hedge-Nettle |
Common Lilac |
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Stinging Nettle |
Common Yarrow |
Ox-Eye Daisy |
Cow Parsnip |
Prairie Groundsel |
Curlydock |
Raspberry |
Currant |
Red Baneberry |
Dandelion |
Rudbeckia |
Fairybells |
Southern Shootingstar |
Field Mint |
Spikenard |
Fleabane: |
Spotted Coralroot |
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Low Fleabane |
Starry Solomonplume |
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Three-Nerve Fleabane |
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Forget-Me-Not |
Fringed Loosestrife |
Goldenrod: |
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Canada Goldenrod |
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Gray Goldenrod |
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Missouri Goldenrod |
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Showy Goldenrod |
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Stiff Goldenrod |
Wildlife |
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Beaver |
Marmot |
Bobcat |
Mink Muskrat |
Chipmunk |
Pocket Gopher |
Cottontail Rabbit |
Porcupine |
Coyote |
Raccoon |
Deer: |
Skunk |
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Mule Deer |
Tree Squirrel |
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White-tailed Deer |
Waterfowl |
Fox |
Weasel |
Vegetation |
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Trees: |
Shrubs: |
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Aspen |
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Chokecherry |
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Boxelder |
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Elderberry |
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Narrowleaf Cottonwood |
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Gooseberry |
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Oak |
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Snowberry |
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Paper Birch |
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Red-osier Dogwood |
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Ponderosa Pine |
Grasses: |
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Spruce |
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Kentucky Bluegrass |
Willow: |
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Orchard Grass |
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Beaked Willow |
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Timothy Grass |
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Yellow Willow |
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Fish |
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Brook Trout |
Brown Trout |
Rainbow Trout |
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Rocks |
Limestone |
Sandstone |
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