The imposing rock faces of Yosemite are very popular with sport climbers, and the rocky heights are also home to the endearing American pika. Mule deer, many with fawns, inhabit the lower valley, which is awash with spring color.

It’s June, and Yosemite has come alive with noise and vibrant colors. The meadow flowers are in bloom, the bobcat kittens are almost full-grown, and the park’s unique amphibian and rodent populations emerge from their winter rest.

In the lower valley, a foraging black bear attacks a colony of ants, which quickly rally to defend themselves. At its driest in summer and fall, the park is at the mercy of forest fires. One of the largest ever, the Rim Fire, broke out in the autumn of 2013, and burned out of control for over ten weeks.

Yosemite’s trees and animals have adapted to endure the occasional wildfire and the extreme changing of the seasons. In September, marmots prepare their burrows for hibernation and the deer are full of energy as the annual rut approaches.

Yosemite’s mountain peaks are already capped with snow and a mist rolls through the valleys. The coyote’s mating season begins as winter starts, and the bobcat mother will soon leave her young to fend for themselves.

Arizona’s Saguaro National Park was created to save the iconic and increasingly rare saguaro cactus from extinction. Within the park’s desert scenery, conflicts arise between species and can often resemble an Old West showdown at high noon!

A courageous roadrunner faces off with a venomous rattlesnake. The small amount of precious rainfall that January provides gives the desert a sudden spark of life. Plants grow, flower, and store water, and the tiny Costa’s hummingbird uses the finest materials that nature provides to make a nest for her young.

Male rattlesnakes “dance” in a show of strength designed to win females. A cholla cactus uses its prickly form of defense and the passing javelina to populate new parts of the desert. Meanwhile, the javelina’s tiny young are threatened by a hungry coyote.

Despite the intense heat, a female hummingbird must adapt her diet and work non-stop to feed the young in her nest. The rattlesnakes are breeding, and the victorious male claims its hard-won mate.

The heat of a scorched riverbed is too much for some animals, but the rare and venomous Gila monster is still active and hunting for prey. Meanwhile, the untiring hummingbird mother will feed her remaining chick until it finally fledges.

May sees drought conditions in the park, but the saguaro cactus is completely unaffected. A family of ground squirrels is laying low, but a long-nosed snake has caught their scent.

The saguaro cactus blooms overnight and its flower is visited the next morning by a Gila woodpecker. As the heat of day rises, harvester ants work go about their work, wary of a mortal enemy in the park.

In June, surviving the ferocious sun and intense heat is a challenge for every living being in the park, and each has developed a special technique to see it through until the next rain.

After the rain, the opuntia cactus, or “prickly pear,” ripens to provide a sweet but not easily accessible meal for animals such as the ground squirrel. As the water seeps in, the park enjoys a moment of relaxation.

A giant scorpion is on the prowl looking for food, and a family of grasshopper mice seems to be on his menu tonight. However, the fortitude of the desert's denizens should never be underestimated.