Living things at Craters of the Moon must overcome daunting challenges if they are to survive. In addition to the scant soil on the cinder cones and lava flows, plants contend with considerable environmental stress.
Summer brings blazing heat and winter frigid cold.
In volcanic soils, the temperature beneath the surface quickly responds to changes in air temperature. Scientists have detected changes in soil temperature three inches below the surface within one hour of a change in air temperature. The marked difference in daytime and nighttime summer temperatures, if extreme, can shock a plant's root system. Average annual precipitation is only 17 inches, much of which occurs as snow. Rainwater and snow melt sink quickly into the porous lava and out of the reach of plant roots.