The journal's geographic coverage includes "from northernmost Canada and Alaska to southern Mexico, and from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean.

"[2] Established in 1939, it is published by the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum (Brigham Young University).

[4] His hope for the journal was to have a publication that covered a wide range of biology-related topics in addition to having a place to publish his own research.

[6] In 1976, articles too long for publication in the journal started being published in The Great Basin Naturalist Memoirs series.

[11] According to Journal Citation Reports, Western North American Naturalist had an impact factor of 0.311 and ranked 147 of 153 in Ecology category in 2016.