US Nationa Parks Listed By Natural Science Topics

This web page provides lists and maps catagorizing natioanal parks by selected themes.
Topics are related to geology, landscapes evolution, ecology, paleontology, and archeology.

US National Parks With Volcanoes and Igenous Rock Features

Below is a list of selected national parks and monuments that display volcanic features or ancient eroded remnant of igneous rock features.

National Parks and Monuments With Volcanoes
(Active or Relatively Recent)

Aniakchak National Monument & Preserve, AK - 1
Capulin Volcano National Park, NM - 2
Crater Lake National Park, OR - 3
Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve, OR - 4
Death Valley National Park, CA -5
El Mal Pais National Monument, NM - 6
Haleakala National Park, HI - 7
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI - 8
Katmai National Park & Preserve, AK - 9
Lassen National Park, CA - 10
Lava Beds National Monument, CA - 11
Mojave National Preserve, CA -12
Mount Rainier National Park, WA - 13
Mount St. Helens Nation Volcanic Monument , WA - 14
Parashant National Monument, AZ - 15
Sunset Crater National Park, AZ - 16
Valles Caldera National Preserve, NM - 17
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, AK -18
Yellowstone National Park, WY - 19

Nearly all recent or active volcanic regions are associated with tectonically active regions: continental rifting, subduction zone volcanoes, and hotspots.

National Parks With Ancient Igneous Rocks
Volcanic & Plutonic Features

Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, GA - 1
Bandelier National Monument, NM - 2
Big Bend National Park , TX - 3
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, CO - 4
Chiricahua National Monument, AZ - 5
City of Rocks National Reserve, ID - 6
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, OR, WA - 7
Devils Postpile National Monument, CA - 8
Devils Tower National Monument , WY - 9
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ - 10
John Day National Monument, OR - 11
Joshua Tree National Park, CA - 12
Lake Mead National Recreation Area AZ, NV - 13
Mount Rushmore National Monument, SD -14
Pinnacles National Park, CA - 15
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, CA - 16
Yosemite National Park , CA - 17

National Parks Associated With Mountain Ranges and Regional Tectonics

Acadia National Park, ME (Northern Appalachians) - 1
Appalachian National Scenic Trail (Maine to Georgia) - 2
Big Bend National Park , TX (Davis Mountains) - 3
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, MT,WY - 4
Arabia Mountain Nati'l Heritage Area, GA (Southern Applachians)- 5
Blue Ridge Parkway, NC, VA (Southern Appalachians) - 6
Carrizo Plain National Monument, CA (San Andreas Fault) - 7
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, KY,TN,VA
(Central Appalachians) - 8
Death Valley National Park, CA (western Great Basin ranges) - 9
Denali National Park, AK (Alaska Ranges) - 10
Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve, AK (Brooks Range) - 11
Glacier National Park, MT - (Northern Rock Mountains) - 12
Great Basin National Park, NV (Great Basin, Basin & Range) - 13
Grand Teton National Park, WY (Central Rocky Mounrtains) - 14
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN, NC
(Southern Appalachians) - 15
Guadelupe Mountains National Park, TX (Davis Mountians) - 16
Hot Springs National Park, AR (Ouachita Mountains) - 17
New England National Scenic Trail, MA, CT
(Northern Appalachians) - 18
North Cascades National Park, WA (North Cascades) -19
Olympic National Park, WA (Olympic Mountains) - 20
Point Reyes National Seashore, CA (San Andreas Fault) - 21
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO (Southern Rocky Mountains) - 22
Shenanadoah National Park, VA (Southern Appalachians) - 23
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, AK (Alaska Ranges) - 24
Yosemite National Park, CA (Sierra Nevada Range) - 25
The Coldilleran Ranges is the name applied to all the mountain ranges and uplifed plateaus along the Pacific Margin of western North, Central, and South America. In North America, the Cordilleran Ranges include the Rocky Mountains, Basin & Range, Colorado and Columbia Plateaus, the Sierra Nevada and Coast Ranges, and the ranges in Alaska and western Canada.

National Parks Featuring Erosional Landscapes Associated With Sedimentary Rocks

Although many parks are host to sediemtnary rocks, the parks listed here all have have unique erosional features associated with well-exposed sedimentary rock formations. Erosional features include cliff-walled canyons, arches, natural bridges, and pinnacle, mesas, and plateaus.
Arches National Park, UT - 1
Badlands National Park, SD - 2
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, MT, WY - 3
Bryce Canyon National Park, UT - 4
Canyonlands National Park, UT - 5
Capitol Reef National Park, UT - 6
Cedar Breaks National Monument, UT - 7
Chaco Culture National Historical Park, NM - 8
Colorado National Monument, CO - 9
Cuyahoga Valley National Park, OH - 10
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, AZ - 11
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ - 12
Mesa Verde National Park, CO - 13
Natural Bridges National Monument, UT - 14
Rainbow Bridge National Monument, UT - 15
Red River Gorge Geologic Area, KY - 16
Scotts Bluff National Monument, NB - 17
Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND - 18
Zion National Park, UT - 19

National Parks Associated With Streams, Rivers, Waterfalls, and Lakes
Alagnak Wild River, AK - 1
Apostle Island National Lakeshore, WI - 2
Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area, KY, TN - 3
Bluestone National Scenic River, WV - 4
Buffalo National River, AR - 5
Canyonlands National Park, UT - 6
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, GA - 7
Chickasaw National Recreation Area, OK - 8
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, OR, WA - 9
Congaree National Park, SC - 10
Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, NJ,PA - 11
-- Lower Delaware National Wild and Scenic River, PA, NJ
-- Upper Delaware Scenic & Recreational River, NY, PA
Dinosaur National Park, UT, CO - 12
Flaming Gorge National Recration Area, UT, WY - 13
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, AZ - 14
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ - 15
Great Falls Park, MD, VA - 16
Hot Springs National Park, AR - 17
Isle Royale National Park, MI - 18
Lake Clark National Park & Preserve, AK - 19
Lake Mead National Recreation Area, AZ - 20
Little River Canyon National Preserve, AL - 21
Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, MS - 22
Missouri National Recreational River, SD, NE - 23
Mississippi River National River & Recreation Area, MN - 24
New River Gorge National River, WV - 25
Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, NY - 26
Niobrara National Scenic River, NB - 27
Noatak National Preserve, AK - 28
Ozark National Scenic Riverways, MO - 29
Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, NJ - 30
Rio Grande Wild & Scenic River, TX - 31
Voyageurs National Park, MN - 32
Yellowstone National Park, WY,MT,ID - 33
Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve, AK - 34
Nearly every national park in the United States has associated streams, rivers, and lakes. The parks listed here are featured because the existance of the park or waterway is based on the role that water or water-carved features are largely responsible for the scenic landscapes and the wildlife ecosystems associated with them (including waterfalls and whitewater rapids). Some of the parks (recreation areas) are associated with dams and reservoirs. Note that much of the West's Colorado and Columbia River canyons are now preserved as parklands. Nearly all these watershed parks are set aside for watershed resource protection management in addition to watersport recreation.
The Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail basically follow the Ohio, Missouri, and Columbia Rivers across the United States.
See Also: 3D Photography of the Powell Survey (1870-1879) of Colorado River Canyon Country

National Parks Associated With Caves, Caverns, and Karst Landscapes
Many parts of the country are underlain by limestone rock formations that are host to caverns and karst landscapes. Some caves are actually lava tubes or open fractures or slot canyons buried beneath boulders. 36 states are know to have caverns or caves. Missouri alone has ~6,400 caves, and Kentucky's Mammoth Cave is arguably the largest cavern system in the world. Although many national parks host caves and caverns, the parks listed below are noted for their caverns (or lava tubes) that are open for public tours.
Buffalo National River, AR - 1
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, NM - 2
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, KY, TN, VA - 3
Great Basin National Park, NV - 4
Jewel Cave National Monument, SD - 5
Mammoth Cave National Park, KY - 6
Oregon Caves National Monument & Preserve, OR - 7
Ozark National Scenic Riverways, MO - 8
Russell Cave National Monument, AL - 9
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, CA - 10
Timpanogos Cave National Monument, UT - 11
Wind Cave National Park, SD - 12
Parks With Lava Tubes
Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve, OR - 13
El Mal Pais National Monument, NM - 14
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI - 15
Lava Beds National Monument, CA - 16

US National Parks With Glacial Features and Glaciations
Parks listed below either have active glaciers and/or have well-preserved landscape features formed from glaciation during the last ice ages.
Acadia National Park, ME - 1
Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve, AK - 2
Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve, AK - 3
Glacier National Park, MT - 4
Grand Teton National Park, WY - 5
Great Basin National Park, NV - 6
Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area, NY - 7
Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, WA,OR,ID,MT
Ice Age National Scenic Trail, WI - 8
Isle Royale National Park, MI - 9
Kenai Fjords National Park, AK - 10
Mt. Rainier National Park, WA - 11
North Cascades National Park, WA - 12
North Country National Scenic Trail, MI,MN,ND,NY,OH,PA,VT,WI
Olympic National Park, WA - 13
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO - 14
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, CA - 15
Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, NV - 16
Voyageurs National Park, MN - 17
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, AK - 18
Yosemite National Park, CA - 19

National Parks Associated With Coastlines and Coastal Processes
Acadia National Park, ME - 1
Assateague Island National Seashore, MD, VA - 2
Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, AK - 3
Biscayne National Park, FL - 4
Cabrillo National Monument, CA - 5
Canaveral National Seashore, FL - 6
Cape Cod National Seashore, MA - 7
Cape Hatteras National Seashore, NC - 8
Cape Krusentern National Monument, AK - 9
Cape Lookout National Seashore, NC - 10
Channel Islands National Park, CA - 11
Chesapeake Bay, DC, DE, MD, PA, VA, WV - 12
Cumberland Island National Seashore, GA - 13
Dry Tortugas National Park, FL - 14
Fire Island National Seashore, NY - 15
Gateway National Recreation Area, NY, NJ - 16
Golden Gate National Recreation Area, CA - 17
Gulf Island National Seashore, FL, MS - 18
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI - 19
Indiana Dunes National Park, IN - 20
Mississippi Gulf National Heritage Area, MS - 21
National Park of American Samoa - 22
Olympic National Park, WA - 23
Padre Island National Seashore, TX - 24
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, MI - 25
Point Reyes National Seashore, CA - 26
San Juan Island National Historical Park, WA - 27
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, CA - 28
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, MI - 29
Timucuan Ecological & Historical Preserve, FL - 30
Virgin Island National Park, VI - 31
Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument, VI - 31
 The coastline of United States has an abundance of national parks. The West Coast is an active plate margin with cliffs and mountain fronts extending to the shoreline (and partly responsible for the incredible scenery of these parks). The parks along East Coast and Gulf Coast are host to sandy beaches and barrier islands and coastal bays, lagoons, and estuaries that are important wildlife habitats. These coastline are also at risk of hurricanes and storms (East and Gulf Coasts). The West Coast has the risk of damaging storms and tsunamis.

Parks Associated With Desert and Dryland Ecosystems and Landscapes
Arches National Park, UT (Colorado Plateau) -1
Badlands National Park, SD (Great Plains) - 2
Big Bend National Park , TX (Chihuahuan Desert) - 3
Capital Reef National Park, UT (Colorado Plateau) - 4
Canyonlands National Park, UT (Colorado Plateau) - 5
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, NM (Chihuahuan Desert) - 6
Death Valley National Park CA (Great Basin and Mojave Deserts) - 7
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, UT,AZ (Colorado Plateau) - 8
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ (Sonoran, Mojave, Colorado P.) - 9
Great Basin National Park, NV(Great Basin) - 10
Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve, CO - 11
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, TX (Permian) - 12
Haleakala National Park, HI - 7 (Maui Silverswords) - 13
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI - 8 (Kao Desert, Big Island) - 14
Joshua Tree National Park, CA (Mojave Desert) - 15
Lake Mead National Recreation Area, AZ (Sonoran, Mojave) - 16
Mojave National Preserve, CA (Mojave Desert) - 17
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, AZ (Sonoran Desert) -18
Petrified Forest National Park, AZ (Colorado Plateau) - 19
Saguaro National Park, AZ (Sonoran Desert) - 20
Scotts Bluff National Monument, NB - 21
Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND - 22
White Sands National Monument, NM (Chihuanhuan Desert) - 23

Parks Associated With Unique Plants Communites And Forest Ecosystems
Atchafalaya National Heritage Area, LA - 1
Badlands National Park, SD - 2
Big Cypress National Preserve, FL - 3
Big Thicket National Preserve, TX - 4
Biscayne National Park, FL - 5
Congaree National Park, SC - 6
Everglades National Park, FL -7
Great Basin National Park, NV - 8
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN, NC - 9
Haleakala National Park, HI - 10
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI - 11
Joshua Tree National Park, CA - 12
Mojave National Preserve, CA -13
Muir Woods National Monument, CA - 14
New Jersey Pineland National Reserve, NJ - 15
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, AZ - 16
Olympic National Park, WA - 17
Redwood National & State Parks, CA - 18
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO - 19
Saguaro National Park, AZ - 20
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, CA - 21
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, KS - 22
Timucuan Ecological & Historical Preserve, FL - 23
Voyageurs National Park, MN - 24
Wind Cave National Park, SD - 25
Yellowstone National Park, WY,MT,ID - 26
Yosemite National Park, CA - 27
Nearly all national parks are host to unique ecosystems. The parks listed here are host to unique flora and fauna that have special significance. Large parks with high mountains and deep valleys are host to multiple ecozones. These parks host plants unique to local or regional climate conditions ranging from tundra (above timberline), mid-elevation mixed pine and deciduous forests, to lowland desert cactus gardens, prairie grasslands, shrublands, rainforest, and river floodplain, swamps, and coastal environments.

Parks Associated With Fossils and Ancient Ecosystems (Paloeontology)
Many significant fossil discoveries have been made across the United States, and many of these important paleontological sites are now preserved within national parks to protect their precious paleontological resources.
Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, NB (Miocene) - 1
Badlands National Park, SD (Cretaceous to Miocene) - 2
Big Bend National Park , TX (Cretaceos, Tertiary) - 3
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, MT,WY (Paleo/Mesozoic)- 4
Capital Reef National Park, UT (Mesozoic) - 5
Channel Islands National Park, CA (Tertiary, Quaternary) - 6
Death Valley National Park CA (Paleozoic, Cenozoic) - 7
Dinosaur National Monument, UT, CO (Jurassic) - 8
Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, CO (Oligoccene) - 9
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, AZ (Mesozoic) - 10
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ (Paleozoic)- 11
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, UT - 12
Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, ID (Pliocene) - 13
Fossil Butte National Monument, WY (Eocene) - 14
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, TX (Permian) - 15
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, OR (Eocene to Miocene) - 16
Joshua Tree National Park, CA (Tertiary) - 17
Petrified Forest National Park, AZ (Triassic) - 18
Scotts Bluff National Monument, NB (Oligocene) - 19
Theodore Roosevelt National Park, ND (Paleocene) - 20
Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, NV (Quaternary) - 21
Waco Mammoth National Monument, TX (Quaternary) - 22
https://gotbooks.miracosta.edu/gonp/park_by_topic.html 10/26/2019