River otters, mink, and beaver frequent freshwater habitats. The Northern Pacific rattlesnake is rare and occurs only inland. Many votes for most popular creatures go to five game fish. Sport and commercial fishermen ply freshwater and saltwater for silver and king salmon, and rainbow, coast cut-throat, and ste head trout. There is far more to Redwood National Park than its spectacular trees.
Redwoods develop the greatest reported volume of living matter per unit of land surface.
The giant sequoias, cousins to the coast redwoods, grow larger in diameter and bulk, but not as tall. Coast redwoods survive to be about 2,000 years old perhaps half the age of giant sequoias and average probably 500-700 years. The living tree has no known killing diseases, and the insects associated with it cause no significant damage. Fire is the worst natural foe, but usually to young trees which lack the thick bark protection. As with most conifers, redwoods lack a taproot, and their broad shallow root system sometimes provides inadequate support for the massive trunk.