The James River Park System

Animals

The animals that live in and around the James River Park System present year-round opportunities for your observation and study. A wide variety of terrestrial habitats are woven throughout the park and still deliver surprises – such as coyote and, most recently, grey fox. Open your eyes and ready your cameras as you roam the park in search of its treasures … and share what you find with us!

Click on animals below to see video of park wildlife

In the spring of 2014, we set out to catalog the biodiversity, or the number of different species, found within the James River Park System. Healthy and diverse habitats support healthy and diverse groups of plants and animals, but the animals in our park can be elusive and often go unseen. To catch them on video, we set out special "game cameras" that record a video when triggered remotely by motion or temperature. Scientists use these cameras to track and monitor wildlife or to record how a species behaves, and our animal friends did not disappoint! For almost a year, we recorded hundreds, if not thousands, of videos that reveal the animals that call our park home -- some common and others that may surprise you ...! You'll find some of these videos on the animal pages below. Enjoy!

Some of the common animal species were recorded over and over again in hundreds of videos (think: raccoons), while other species were only recorded once or twice (think: mink). But our cameras are still out, so check back to see new videos, and, hopefully, we will add a new species every now and then. And, don’t miss the factsheets for each species.

See fish and insects found in the park.

Species Lists

• Mammal
• Arthropod
• Bird
• Lepidoptera (butterfly)