Scientific Document
Lewis’s Descriptions of New Animal Species
Lewis and Clark documented approximately 120 animal species previously unknown to Western science, including detailed descriptions of the grizzly bear, pronghorn antelope, prairie dog, mountain goat, California condor, and numerous fish, bird, and mammal species. These descriptions constituted the most significant zoological survey of the American West to that date.
Among the most notable species described were the grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) — which nearly killed several expedition members — the pronghorn antelope, the black-tailed prairie dog (live specimens of which were sent to Jefferson), the cutthroat trout, the eulachon (candlefish), the mountain quail, Lewis’s woodpecker, Clark’s nutcracker, and the Oregon bobcat. Lewis’s detailed physical descriptions and behavioral observations provided the basis for scientific classification by naturalists including George Ord, Alexander Wilson, and Charles Lucien Bonaparte.
