Ruby Mountains - Ecology

Ecology

The eastern Great Basin is wetter than the western part in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada range. Moisture collected by this high range promoted the heavy Pleistocene glaciation and still supports a wide variety of flora and fauna. Lower elevations are covered by aspen trees, while higher up the whitebark and limber pines predominate. Mountain goats, bighorn sheep, mule deer, mountain lions, marmots, beaver, and pikas are common residents. A population of Himalayan Snowcock was introduced from Pakistan, and is thriving among the high cliffs. Streams, particularly on the western slopes have populations of native Lahontan or Humboldt Cutthroat Trout, but many of these populations are hybridized with Rainbow Trout or have been displaced by Brown and Brook Trout, all stocked for angling purposes before impacts on native trout species were well understood.