 Yosemite is one of the largest and least fragmented habitat blocks in the Sierra Nevada , and the park supports a diversity of plants and animals . The park has an elevation range from 2 @,@ 127 to 13 @,@ 114 feet ( 648 to 3 @,@ 997 m ) and contains five major vegetation zones : chaparral / oak woodland , lower montane forest , upper montane forest , subalpine zone , and alpine . Of California 's 7 @,@ 000 plant species , about 50 % occur in the Sierra Nevada and more than 20 % within Yosemite . There is suitable habitat for more than 160 rare plants in the park , with rare local geologic formations and unique soils characterizing the restricted ranges many of these plants occupy . 
