Zion and its Animals

Hello All. This is an informational blog post for homeschooling about the animals I saw in Zion National Park. Oh and one that even bit me...more about that later 😶.

August 27, 2019: Today, we saw a Western Skink on the Watchman Trail.  Western Skinks are lizards that have bright blue tails. Over time as they get older, the blue color fades.   They eat leaves, spiders, different insects, sow bugs, crickets, moths, and grasshoppers.   They live in habitats such as Zions where there are both dry and moist landscapes.  

August 28th, 2019: We found wild turkeys at the beginning of Angels Landing.  Angels Landing is now one of my favorite hikes because of the views.  It gets very dangerous after Scout’s Lookout, which is part of the hike.   I did not go any further after Scout’s Lookout because it was super dangerous due to the high elevation climb.  My dad, mom, and Ranger Drew all said it probably wasn’t a good idea.   

August 29th, 2019: We went on another hike today on the Alpine Loop Trail, which is at Cedar Breaks National Monument, just North of Zion.  Here is an interesting bug we saw. We had to look it up to see what it was, do any of you know what it is?

Only the female has a spike on it’s tush. The "spike" is used to lay eggs, and is not a stinger. The one we saw was about 3” long! September 1st, 2019: Have you ever been bitten by a Harvester Ant?  I have!  We were at the Northgate Peaks Trail in Northwest Zion when I got bit by one and it HURT!   You probably don’t want to get bit by one yourself.  Their bite can potentially kill any animal that comes near their nest, luckily I'm still alive.   You will know they have a nest in your grass because they clear out all the vegetation near their nest.   You may not want Harvester Ants, but you should keep reading my blog because it’s going to keep getting better and better.