Pinyon-juniper woodlands are scattered at elevations above 4,000 feet. On the northern lands of the Dixie National Forest, low mountain slopes are home to big sagebrush, antelope bitterbrush, Utah serviceberry, and mountain mahogany. But large expanses of slickrock limit such vegetation to less than five percent of the land surface. At lower elevations, blackbrush desert shrub vegetation, with intermittent bursage, Mormon tea, and desert bitterbrush, is the dominant type. Here too plant life is restricted by slickrock and rock outcrops that comprise nearly 90 percent of the surface.
Riparian zones vary greatly in their vegetation density and moisture.
Fremont cottonwood, velvet and singleleaf ash, and screwbean mesquite grow along the intermittent streams-Mill Creek, Quail Creek, and Heath Wash. Tilting downward to the north beneath the wilderness study area is the Navajo sandstone aquifer that supplies the municipal water for burgeoning St. George and nearby Washington. Proposed water development and nearby urban growth pose serious threats to this wildland. Straddling the boundary between Basin and Range and Colorado Plateau, this transition zone provides habitat for a diversity of wildlife. The lower desert elevations are significant habitat for desert tortoise. Birders may find eagles and falcons swooping along cliffs on the northern boundary, especially in winter.