Alpine Zone--Any area above timberline--(About 11,300 feet) Grasses and
herbaceous plants
These mammals could live the year 'round here if necessary, but all
can and do range into the other two zones below:
Pika
Marmot
Pocket Gopher
Coyote
Red Fox
Snowshoe Hare
Mountain Sheep
Long-tailed Vole
Dwarf Vole
Subalpine Zone--9,000 feet to timberline--Dense forests of alpine fir
and engelmann spruce, with occasional limber pine.
These animals extend but rarely into the alpine zone during the
coldest part of the winter, and can and do range into the zone below:
Chickaree
Bobcat
Marten
Cottontail
White-tailed Jack Rabbit
Dusky Shrew
Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel
Least Chipmunk
Red-backed Vole
Porcupine
Long-tailed Weasel
Montane Zone--6,000 to 9,000 feet--Predominantly western yellow pine
with scattered Douglas fir and aspen trees.
These animals are considered characteristic of this lowest Park zone
and rarely wander into the subalpine zone.
Striped Skunk
Badger
Richardson
Abert Squirrel
Cliff Mouse
Ground Squirrel
All other mammals in the area, not mentioned above, probably range
throughout these zones, especially during the summer months. Lodgepole
pine may occur in the montane zone, while lodgepole pine and aspen are
also abundant in the burned-over areas of the subalpine region. They are
classified as sub-climax species and therefore not acceptable as zone
indicators. When considering the altitude of timberline, it is important
to understand that it will vary as much as 500 feet above or below the
average of 11,300 feet, depending generally on the quantities of
sunlight received. On warmer south and west slopes, timberline may go as
high as 11,800 feet, while on the shaded north and east slopes it may
drop down to 10,800 feet.