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Wildlife near Aurora, CO

Illustrated wildlife of Aurora

Aurora spreads across the high plains east of Denver, where the shortgrass prairie is never far. The reservoirs on the city’s edges draw pelicans, grebes, and wintering waterfowl, prairie dogs hold colonies in the open ground with burrowing owls among them, and pronghorn and coyotes work the grassland margins. In the neighborhoods it is Canada geese, cottontails, and black-billed magpies.

Everything below is pulled live from recent research-grade observations near Aurora. Browse by group, explore the map, and identify what you find with Huck.

81,484
recent observations
30
species listed
11
birds
9
plants
3
mammals

Naturalists have logged 81,484 research-grade observations across the 30 most-recorded species near Aurora. The most frequently seen is the Showy Milkweed, with 4,766 recorded sightings.

Birds account for the largest share of what gets recorded there (11 of the species listed here), followed by plants (9).

🖨️ Printable wildlife checklist

Most-observed species near Aurora

Showy Milkweed
Asclepias speciosa
4,766 observations
Red-tailed Hawk
Buteo jamaicensis
4,469 observations
Mallard
Anas platyrhynchos
4,437 observations
Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Cynomys ludovicianus
3,981 observations
Western Honey Bee
Apis mellifera
3,581 observations
Canada Goose
Branta canadensis
3,548 observations
Mule Deer
Odocoileus hemionus
3,243 observations
Red-winged Blackbird
Agelaius phoeniceus
3,170 observations
Eastern Fox Squirrel
Sciurus niger
3,159 observations
Northern Flicker
Colaptes auratus
2,925 observations
Black-billed Magpie
Pica hudsonia
2,909 observations
Great Plains Yucca
Yucca glauca
2,861 observations
Great Mullein
Verbascum thapsus
2,766 observations
Field Bindweed
Convolvulus arvensis
2,731 observations
American Robin
Turdus migratorius
2,682 observations
Rubber Rabbitbrush
Ericameria nauseosa
2,615 observations · iNaturalist
House Finch
Haemorhous mexicanus
2,532 observations
Bold Jumping Spider
Phidippus audax
2,392 observations
Painted Lady
Vanessa cardui
2,104 observations
Double-crested Cormorant
Nannopterum auritum
2,010 observations
Gopher Snake
Pituophis catenifer
1,972 observations
Western Terrestrial Garter Snake
Thamnophis elegans
1,964 observations
Common Starlily
Leucocrinum montanum
1,943 observations · iNaturalist
Woodhouse's Toad
Anaxyrus woodhousii
1,930 observations
Bald Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
1,878 observations
Redstem Stork's-bill
Erodium cicutarium
1,825 observations · iNaturalist
Scarlet Globemallow
Sphaeralcea coccinea
1,818 observations
Thistle Poppy
Argemone polyanthemos
1,773 observations · iNaturalist
Great Blue Heron
Ardea herodias
1,753 observations
Japanese Beetle
Popillia japonica
1,747 observations

Built from recent research-grade iNaturalist observations. Identifications are community-sourced and may occasionally be wrong, and the ranking reflects where people record and photograph wildlife, so a species seen often here is not necessarily rare elsewhere. Some plants and animals are only out in certain seasons. Treat this as a lively snapshot of what people are finding, not a formal checklist.

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