Black Canyon Wildlife
The Black Canyon of the Colorado River is one of the best places to see wildlife in the Las Vegas area. You can see bald eagles, bighorn sheep, large reptiles, and even the elusive mountain lion if you’re lucky!
Desert Treasures
Recently, we’ve been seeing a lot of bighorn sheep, but they blend so well into the desert that they are even hard to see in our pictures! The desert tortoise is Nevada’s state reptile. It is also tough to see, and it can live up to 50 years old.
Iguanas and lizards are very common and not too difficult to see since they are active all day. The desert iguana can grow up to 14” long and appear dark brown or light tan depending on the time of day. The Gila monster is extremely rare and is one of only two venomous lizards in the world. I’ve only ever seen one unromantically, which was in the middle of the road! It’s difficult to comprehend what it is when you finally see one and you think that it’s too fat to be a lizard and too short to be a snake, so what is it?
Snakes?!
The one type of wildlife nobody ever seems to want to see are the snakes. There are four types of rattlesnakes in the Black Canyon area, all considered dangerous. Rattlesnake venom is very toxic, so as with all wildlife, we like to view them from a safe distance. Any bite requires immediate evacuation, including bites from baby rattlesnakes!
The king snake is one of the most readily identified non-venomous snakes in the Black Canyon area. It’s quite large, up to 42 inches, and has a thick body. It’s easily identified by its pattern of black or dark brown rings alternating with white or cream-colored rings along its entire body.
Black Canyon Birds
Our guests are often surprised by the number of bald eagles we see. In addition, we have several species of owls, hummingbirds, and ducks, including common mergansers and grebes, in the Black Canyon area. The riparian landscape along the river provides an excellent feeding ground for insect-eating birds.
You’ll find a variety of fish in the river, including largemouth bass, striped bass, black crappie, bluegill, and channel catfish.
So no matter what time of day (or night) you visit Black Canyon, you’re almost certain to see a variety of interesting wildlife that make up a special and unique desert kayak experience to remember.