Natural history of Minnesota

The continental climate and location of Minnesota at the physiographic intersection of the Laurentian and the Interior Plains influences its plant and animal life.

[4] Historic (and modern) loss of habitat, as well as overharvesting, has affected some native mammals to the point of extirpation, including the bison (disappeared in the mid-1800s; the last bison was reported in southwest Minnesota in 1879;[5] a non-wild population exists in Blue Mounds State Park[6]), cougar (though vagrant individuals are becoming more common),[7] wolverine,[8] and the boreal woodland caribou (extirpated from all the Lower 48).

Located on the Mississippi Flyway, Minnesota hosts migratory waterfowl such as geese and ducks, and game birds such as grouse, pheasants, and turkeys.

It is home to the largest population of bald eagles in the contiguous United States following a large increase in conservation efforts and breeding areas since 1989, with an estimated 30 active nests in the Twin Cities alone.

The lakes contain other sport fish such as smallmouth and largemouth bass, muskellunge, and northern pike, and streams in the southeast are populated by brook, brown, and rainbow trout.