5
Mississippi Wildlife
The Mississippi is home to about
240 species of fish and 50 different
mammals
. Moose and eagles live
along the upper reaches of the
river. The bald eagle is the national
symbol of the United States
and is a protected species.
Alligators and muskrats make their
homes in the lower Mississippi.
Omaha
Kansas City
Oklahoma City
St. Louis
Des Moines
Minneapolis
St. Paul
Coon Rapids
Lake Itasca
Chicago
Springfield
Memphis
Baton Rouge
New Orleans
G u l f o f M e x i c o
Columbus
Cincinnati
N
ORTH
D
AKOTA
S
OUTH
D
AKOTA
M
ONTANA
W
YOMING
S
ASKATCHEWAN
I
OWA
N
EBRASKA
K
ANSAS
L
OUISIANA
A
LABAMA
M
ISSISSIPPI
T
EXAS
M E X I C O
C A N A D A
U N I T E D S TAT E S
A
RKANSAS
M
ISSOURI
K
ENTUCKY
T
ENNESSEE
G
EORGIA
S
OUTH
C
AROLINA
N
ORTH
C
AROLINA
W
ISCONSIN
M
INNESOTA
V
IRGINIA
I
LLINOIS
O
HIO
I
NDIANA
C
OLORADO
O
KLAHOMA
M
I
S
S
O
U
R
I
R
I
V
E
R
M
I
S
S
O
U
R
I
R
I
V
E
R
M
I
S
S
I
S
S
I
P
P
I
R
I
V
E
R
M
I
S
S
I
S
S
I
P
P
I
R
I
V
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R
G
R
E
A
T
P
L
A
I
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S
R
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K
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M
O
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N
T
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S
This bald eagle
lives by catching fish
in the Mississippi.
It uses its powerful
talons to snatch fish
from the river.
The Mississippi River was
formed during the last ice age,
10,000–12,000 years ago. At
that time, most of Earth was
covered with
glaciers
. When
the ice melted, water flowed
across the land, forming the
Mississippi
channel
. The
name “Mississippi” comes
from Native American words
meaning “Big River.”
Birth of a River
