Rocky Mountains Essay Research Paper Rocky Mountains

Rocky Mountains Essay, Research Paper

Rocky Mountains or Rockies, great chain of rugged mountain ranges in western

North America, extending from central New Mexico to northeastern British

Columbia, a distance of about 3220 km (about 2000 mi). The Great Basin and the

Rocky Mountain Trench, a valley running from northwestern Montana to northern

British Columbia, border the Rockies on the east by the Great Plains and on the

west. The Rocky Mountains form part of the Great, or Continental, Divide, which

separates rivers draining into the Atlantic or Arctic oceans from those flowing

toward the Pacific Ocean. The Arkansas, Colorado, Columbia, Missouri, Rio

Grande, Saskatchewan, and Snake rivers rise in the Rockies. The Rockies may be

divided into four principal sections?Southern, Central, Northern, and

Canadian. The Southern Rockies, which include the system’s broadest and highest

regions, extend from central New Mexico, through Colorado, to the Great Divide,

or Wyoming, Basin, in southern Wyoming. This section, which encompasses Rocky

Mountain National Park, is composed chiefly of two northern-southern belts of

mountain ranges with several basins, or parks, between the belts. The component

parts include the Sanger de Crisco and Laramie mountains and the Front Range, in

the east, and the San Juan Mountains and the Swatch and Park ranges, in the

west. The Southern Rockies include the chain’s loftiest point, Mount Elbert

(4399 m/14,433 ft high), in central Colorado. More than 50 other peaks of the

Rockies rising above 4267 m (14,000 ft) are in Colorado; these include Longs

Peak (4345 m/14,255 ft high) and Pikes Peak (4301 m/14,110 ft high). The Central

Rockies are in northeastern Utah, western Wyoming, eastern Idaho, and southern

Montana. They encompass the Bighorn; Bear tooth, and Unite Mountains and the

Absaroka, Wind River, Salt River, Teton, Snake River, and Wasatch ranges. The

Unite Mountains are the only major portion of the Rockies that extends east west

rather than north south. Among the peaks of the Central Rockies, which include

Grand Eton and Yellowstone national parks, are Gannett Peak (4207 m/13,804 ft

high), Grand Eton (4197 m/13,771 ft high), and Fremont Peak (4185 m/13,730 ft

high). The Northern Rockies are in northern Idaho, western Montana, and

northeastern Washington. They include the Saw tooth, Cabinet, Salmon River, and

Clearwater Mountains and the Bitterroot Range. The loftiest points in the

section, which includes Glacier National Park, are Granite Peak (3901 m/12,799

ft high) and Borax Peak (3859 m/12,662 ft high). The Canadian Rockies, located

in southwestern Alberta and eastern British Columbia, are composed of a

relatively narrow belt of mountain ranges that terminates at the Lizard River

lowland in northeastern British Columbia. The peaks of the section, which takes

in Banff, Jasper, Kootenay, Waterton Lakes, and Yoho National Parks, include

Mount Robson (3954 m/12,972 ft high), Mount Columbia (3747 m/12,294 ft high),

and The Twins (3734 m/12,251 ft high). Slopes generally are very steep, and

there are numerous glaciers. The Rocky Mountains are a geologically complex

system with jagged peaks as well as almost flat-topped elevations. The Rockies

were formed mainly by crustal uplifts in comparatively recent times, during the

late Cretaceous and early Tertiary periods, and later were reshaped by

glaciation during the Pleistocene Epoch. Today the Rockies receive moderate

amounts of precipitation, most of which occurs in the winter. Lower levels are

covered chiefly by grassland, which gives way to extensive forests, principally

of conifers. Above the woodland is a zone of grasses and scattered shrubs. Most

peaks have little vegetation around the summit, and some have a year-round cap

of snow and ice. The Rockies are sparsely populated for the most part and

contain few cities. The principal economic resources of the mountains are

minerals, such as coal, copper, gold, iron ore, lead, molybdenum, petroleum and

natural gas, silver, and zinc. Important mining centers include Leadville and

Climax, Colorado; Atlantic City, Wyoming; Kellogg, Idaho; Butte, Montana; and

Fernie and Kimberley, British Columbia. Major forest products industries,

especially lumbering, are concentrated in the Northern and Canadian Rockies, and

large numbers of sheep and cattle are raised in the Rockies of Colorado,

Wyoming, and Montana. The chain has many centers for outdoor recreation and

tourism. Bighorn Mountains, isolated range of the Rocky Mountains, lying east of

the Bighorn River and extending generally north from central Wyoming into

southern Montana. The range averages more than 2134 m (7000 ft) in elevation;

the highest summit is Cloud Peak (4019 m/13,187 ft) in Wyoming. Along the upper

levels are large coniferous forests, which are part of Bighorn National Forest.

Bitterroot Range, mountain range, northwestern United States, a chain of the

Rocky Mountains, extending about 700 km (about 435 mi) along the Montana-Idaho

border. Rugged and forested, with an average elevation of 2740 m (about 9000

ft), it remains one of the most inaccessible areas in the United States. In 1805

the Lewis and Clark Expedition traveled west through Lolo Pass (1595 m/5233 ft)

in the range. Guadalupe Mountains, mountain range, southwestern United States, a

branch of the Rocky Mountains, extending from southern New Mexico to western

Texas. Guadalupe Peak (2667 m/8749 ft above sea level), the highest in the

chain, is in Texas. Laramie Mountains, range of the Rocky Mountains, western

United States, extending from southeastern Wyoming into northern Colorado. The

highest point, Laramie Peak, is 3131 m (10,272 ft) above sea level. Coal, the

principal mineral, is found in the foothills. San Juan Mountains, mountain

range, southwestern United States, in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New

Mexico. Part of the Rocky Mountains, it is of volcanic origin and is rich in

minerals. The highest peaks are in Colorado and include Uncompahgre Peak (4361

m/14,309 ft), Mount Sneffels (4313 m/14,150 ft), and Wetterhorn Peak (4272

m/14,017 ft). Sangre de Cristo Mountains, mountain range, western United States,

the southernmost range of the Rocky Mountains, in south central Colorado and

north central New Mexico. The very high and narrow range extends southeast and

south for about 354 km (220 mi), from Salida, Colorado, to Santa Fe County, New

Mexico. Blanca Peak (4372 m/14,345 ft), in Colorado, is one of the highest

mountains of the Rockies. Sawatch Range, mountain range, central Colorado, a

branch of the Rocky Mountains. The range extends for about 177 km (about 110 mi)

and reaches a height of 4399 m (14,433 ft) at Mount Elbert, the highest point in

the state. Teton (mountain range), range of the Rocky Mountains, in northwestern

Wyoming, and southwestern Idaho, just south of Yellowstone National Park, west

of Jackson Lake and the Snake River. The highest peak is Grand Teton (4197

m/13,771 ft), located in Grand Teton National Park. Teton Pass (2569 m/8429 ft)

and Phillips Pass (3261 m/10,700 ft) are just south of the park. Uinta

Mountains, mountain range, western United States, mainly in northeastern Utah

and partly in southwestern Wyoming, part of the Rocky Mountains. The peaks of

the Uinta Mountains are mostly flat because of erosion by glaciers and the

waters of the Yampa and Green rivers. The range is about 240 km (about 150 mi)

long and 48 to 64 km (30 to 40 mi) wide. The highest elevation is Kings Peak,

which is 4123 m (13,528 ft) high and is also the highest point in Utah. Wasatch

Range, mountain range, western United States, in the Rocky Mountain system. The

range is about 240 km (about 150 mi) long; part of the Central Rockies, it

begins in southeastern Idaho and runs southward, east of the Great Salt Lake and

through the center of Utah, gradually ending in southwestern Utah. The average

height of the range is about 3050 m (about 10,000 ft), and the highest peak,

Mount Nebo, is 3620 m (11,877 ft) high. Wind River Range, range of the Rocky

Mountains, western Wyoming, forming part of the Continental Divide. The Green

River rises in the southwestern slope of the range, and many tributaries of the

Wind River flow off on the northeastern side. The range contains Fremont Peak

(4185 m/13,730 ft) and Gannett Peak (4207 m/13,804 ft); the latter is the

highest point in Wyoming. Arkansas (river, United States), river, western U.S.,

a major tributary of the Mississippi River, 2350 km (1460 mi) long. Rising in

central Colorado, in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains, at an altitude of

about 4270 m (about 14,000 ft), the river flows generally east and forms a

turbulent stream passing over rocky beds and through deep canyons such as the

Royal Gorge. As it flows through the plains of Kansas, the river broadens to a

wider, less turgid stream until it enters Oklahoma; at that point it receives

two chief tributaries, the Cimarron and the Canadian rivers. Except for a large

northern bend in Kansas, the Arkansas River follows a southeastern course,

merging with the Mississippi River above Arkansas City, Arkansas. The water

levels of the river are extremely variable, and several dams have been built for

flood control and irrigation and to create hydroelectric power; one of the most

impressive, the John Martin Dam in southeastern Colorado, was built in 1948. The

Arkansas River Navigation System, completed in the early 1970s, made the river

navigable to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Athabasca, river and lake, in western Canada, that

form part of the Mackenzie River system. The Athabasca River, 1231 km (765 mi)

long, begins in Jasper National Park in southwestern Alberta. Its source is the

Columbia Icefield, high in the Rocky Mountains. The river flows northeast across

Alberta and empties through a shallow delta into Lake Athabasca in northeastern

Alberta. The river was once an important route for fur traders. Lake Athabasca,

which straddles the AlbertaSaskatchewan- border, is about 320 km (about 200 mi)

long and covers about 7936 sq km (about 3064 sq mi). Fort Chipewyan, which was

built along the southwestern shore of the lake in 1788, became one of the

region’s most important fur-trading posts. Today Lake Athabasca is used for

commercial fishing. It is drained to the north by the Slave River. Large

deposits of petroleum-bearing sand are located along the lower Athabasca River,

near Fort McMurray. Long known but untapped because of high extraction costs,

the deposits are now mined using new technology and efficient methods. In 1994

the output amounted to one-quarter of Canada’s crude oil production. Canadian,

also South Canadian, unnavigable river, southwestern United States, 1460 km (906

mi) long. The Canadian River is formed in northeastern New Mexico by the union

of several branches from the southern Rocky Mountains. The river flows south

through New Mexico and then turns east, crossing the Texas Panhandle into

Oklahoma. Following a meandering course, it finally joins the Arkansas River.

The river’s only major tributary is the North Canadian River, 1260 km (784 mi)

long, which runs almost parallel to the Canadian River in Oklahoma. The

tributary joins the Canadian River at Eufaula in eastern Oklahoma to form the

Eufaula Reservoir. In northeastern New Mexico, a semiarid region, the Canadian

River provides an important water source at the Conchas Dam, a flood-control and

irrigation project. Colorado (river, North America), river, in southwestern

United States and northwestern Mexico, 2330 km (1450 mi) long, the longest river

west of the Rocky Mountains. The Colorado rises just west of the Continental

Divide, in northern Colorado, and, for the first 1600 km (about 1000 mi) of its

course, passes through a series of deep gorges and canyons that were created by

the eroding force of its current. The river flows in a generally southwestern

direction across Colorado into southeastern Utah, where it joins its chief

tributary, the Green River. After crossing the northern portion of Arizona, the

Colorado flows west for 446 km (277 mi) through the majestic Grand Canyon. It

then flows in a generally southerly direction and forms the boundary between

Arizona and the states of Nevada and California. Near Yuma, Arizona, the river

crosses the international border into Mexico and flows for about 145 km (90 mi)

to its mouth on the Gulf of California, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean. Besides

the Green River, the most important tributaries of the Colorado include the

Dolores and Gunnison rivers, in Colorado; the San Juan River, in Utah; and the

Little Colorado and Gila rivers, in Arizona. With its tributaries, the Colorado

drains portions of seven states, a total area, in Colorado, Wyoming, Nevada,

Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and California, of about 626,800 sq km (about 242,000

sq mi) and 5180 sq km (2000 sq mi) more in Mexico. To control the tremendous

flow of the Colorado, particularly under flood conditions, an extensive series

of dams, many of them constructed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, has been

built along the river and its tributaries. Notable is the Hoover Dam, which

impounds the river at the Black Canyon to form Lake Mead, one of the largest

artificial lakes in the world. The Glen Canyon Dam, in north-central Arizona

just south of the Utah border, is the third highest dam in the U.S. In addition

to regulating the flow of water, dams on the Colorado harness hydroelectric

power and provide storage reservoirs for irrigation projects. As such, they have

been instrumental in reclaiming the semiarid and arid regions through which the

river flows. The Imperial Valley of southern California is an excellent example

of land reclaimed by the waters of the Colorado. A number of reservoirs have

been incorporated into national recreation areas. The Glen Canyon National

Recreation Area in Utah encompasses Lake Powell, formed by the Glen Canyon Dam.

Lakes Mead and Mohave (the latter formed by Davis Dam) are part of Lake Mead

National Recreation Area in Arizona. The Colorado was first explored by the

Spanish navigator Hernando de Alarc?n, who ascended the river for more than 160

km (100 mi) in 1540-1541. The Colorado and its chief tributary, the Green, were

thoroughly explored for the first time in 1869 by the American geologist John

Wesley Powell. On this survey Powell and his party made the first recorded

passage of the Grand Canyon. The construction of the Glen Canyon Dam in 1963

dramatically reduced the natural flow of sand and nutrients down the Colorado

River and into the Grand Canyon. In March 1996 the federal government released

more than 380 billion liters (100 billion gallons) of water from Glen Canyon

Dam. This artificial flood added more than three feet to some beaches downstream

and cleared fish spawning grounds of debris and sediment. Further Reading

Columbia (river, North America), Major River of western North America, rising in

Columbia Lake, just west of the main range of the Rocky Mountains, in

southeastern British Columbia. The river was formerly known as the Oregon River.

The Columbia River is about 2000 km (1240 mi) long. It initially flows

northwest, through a long, narrow valley called the Rocky Mountain Trench, and

then turns sharply south, skirting the Selkirk Mountains and passing through

Upper Arrow Lake and Lower Arrow Lake. It next receives the Kootenay (spelled

Kootenai in the United States) and Pend Oreille rivers before entering the state

of Washington, where it first flows south and then traverses a great arc, known

as the Big Bend. After receiving the Snake River, the Columbia turns west and

forms much of the boundary between the states of Washington and Oregon before

emptying into the Pacific Ocean through a broad estuary. The river flows through

several spectacular canyons and deep valleys. About one-third of its course is

in Canada. The Columbia and its tributaries together drain a vast basin of about

673,400 sq km (about 260,000 sq mi). Large oceangoing ships can navigate the

lower Columbia River as far as Vancouver, Washington; and, with the aid of

locks, smaller marine vessels can reach The Dalles, Oregon, about 300 km (about

186 mi) upstream. Barges and other shallow-draft boats can navigate a further

220 km (137 mi). The Columbia River has immense hydroelectric potential, and

since the 1930s several large power projects have been built on it. The largest

of these, the Grand Coulee Dam, in central Washington, is the key unit of the

Columbia Basin Project, a federal undertaking also designed to irrigate up to

485,623 hectares (1.2 million acres) of semiarid land. Other important power

projects on the Columbia include Bonneville, The Dalles, John Day, McNary,

Priest Rapids, Rocky Reach, and Chief Joseph dams, in the United States, and

Mica Dam, in Canada. Most of these dams are also used for flood control and for

irrigation. The American explorer Robert Gray explored the mouth of the Columbia

River in 1792. He named the river for his ship. The Lewis and Clark Expedition

explored the lower Columbia from 1805 to 1806, and David Thompson, a Canadian

surveyor and explorer, followed the river from its source to its mouth in 1811.

The Columbia once had great numbers of salmon and supported a large canning

industry; the fish stock was severely depleted in the 1900s as a result of dam

construction and pollution. In an effort to protect the salmon from extinction,

the Northwest Power Planning Council in 1994 approved a plan to rebuild salmon

stock by increasing the water flow through the dams and by developing habitat

protection standards. Further Reading Continental Divide (also called the Great

Divide), ridge of mountains in North America, separating the streams that flow

west (into the Pacific Ocean) from those that flow east (into the Atlantic Ocean

and its marginal seas). Most of the divide follows the crest of the Rocky

Mountains. It extends from Alaska in the United States into the Yukon Territory

and British Columbia in Canada and forms part of the border between British

Columbia and Alberta, also in Canada. It then passes through Montana, Wyoming,

Colorado, and New Mexico in the United States and continues south into Mexico

and Central America along the crest of the Sierra Madre Occidental. The term

continental divide may be applied to the principal watershed boundary of any

continent. Fraser, river in southern British Columbia, Canada. The Fraser rises

in the Rocky Mountains, in Mount Robson Provincial Park near the Alberta border,

and flows 1370 km (850 mi) before emptying, through a delta, into the Strait of

Georgia, near Vancouver. The Fraser initially flows northwest through a section

of a deep, narrow valley called the Rocky Mountain Trench. It then turns south

near the city of Prince George, where it receives its major western tributary,

the Nechako River. In its central section, the volume of the river increases,

and below Quesnel its banks gradually take on a canyonlike aspect. Important

tributaries in this section include the West Road and Chilcotin rivers, from the

west, and the Thompson River, from the east. From Lytton to Yale the river flows

through a canyon of great scenic beauty. At the canyon’s southern end the Fraser

passes between the Cascade Range to the east and the Coast Mountains to the

west. A little below Yale, at Hope, the river turns sharply west, and the

fertile lower Fraser Valley begins. The Fraser empties into the Strait of

Georgia through three main channels. The river is used by commercial vessels for

a short distance upstream. From May to July the Fraser Valley is subject to

flooding; a series of dikes helps protect the delta. The Fraser drains an area

of about 238,000 sq km (about 91,890 sq mi). Much of the river basin is heavily

wooded, and forest-products industries dominate the economy of the settlements

along the river. The lower Fraser Valley, including the delta, has highly

productive farms. Various species of salmon spawn in the Fraser, and salmon

fisheries are located near the river’s mouth. The river has great hydroelectric

potential, but it remains undeveloped for fear of detrimental effects on the

migratory habits of the salmon. The Fraser is highly polluted, especially at its

mouth. The first European to visit the river was Sir Alexander Mackenzie in

1793. It is named for the fur trader Simon Fraser, who explored much of it in

1808. In 1858 gold was found in alluvial gravels north of Yale, and a major gold

rush ensued. Louise, Lake, glacial lake in southwestern Alberta, Canada. Lake

Louise is located at an elevation of 1731 m (5680 ft) in Banff National Park,

near the town of Lake Louise. The lake is about 2.4 km (about 1.5 mi) long and

1.2 km (0.75 mi) wide. Sheltered by the Rocky Mountains, Lake Louise is known

for the tranquil beauty of its turquoise-blue surface, which mirrors nearby

scenic forests and snowcapped peaks. The lake is fed from the north by the

spectacular Victoria Glacier and is drained by the Bow River in the southeast.

Lake Louise was named in 1884 for the Canadian governor-general’s wife, who was

also the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. Missouri (river) (Illinois

Emissourita,"dwellers of the big muddy"), river in central United

States. The Missouri is formed by the confluence of the Jefferson, Gallatin, and

Madison rivers at Three Forks in southwestern Montana. The longest river in the

United States, the Missouri is one of the primary tributaries of the Mississippi

River. It flows 3726 km (2315 mi) and drains an area of about 1,370,000 sq km

(about 529,000 sq mi). The Missouri initially flows north, skirting the main

range of the Rocky Mountains. Then it passes through a 366-m (1200-ft) gorge

called the Gates of the Mountains, turns northeast and reaches Fort Benton,

Montana, the head of navigation. From Fort Benton the river flows east and is

joined by the Milk River at Frazer, Montana, and by the Yellowstone River at

Buford, North Dakota. From this point the Missouri flows generally southeast

through North Dakota and South Dakota to Sioux City, Iowa, where it turns south

and becomes the boundary between Nebraska and Kansas on the west and Iowa and

Missouri on the east. The Platte River is received near Omaha, Nebraska, and the

Kansas River at Kansas City, Missouri. On receiving the Kansas, the Missouri

turns east and flows across the state of Missouri. About 27 km (about 17 mi)

north of St. Louis, the muddy Missouri enters the channel of the Mississippi.

Other important cities on the river are Bismarck, North Dakota; Council Bluffs,

Iowa; Saint Joseph, Missouri; and Atchison, Leavenworth, and Kansas City,

Kansas. The upper Missouri traverses mountainous terrain covered with dense

coniferous forests. These forests support large animals, including bears, elk,

and moose. Fish found in the cold upper river include the Montana grayling and

the rainbow trout. The middle and lower river valleys are lined with grasslands

and forests of poplar, hickory, and other trees, providing a habitat for

rabbits, foxes, beavers, and other animals. Fish in the warmer lower river

include bass, several species of catfish, and carp. Historically, a number of

Native American peoples lived in the valley along the Missouri, including the

Hidatsa, Crow, Iowa, Arikara, Blackfoot, and Sioux. The region was popular for

buffalo hunting and agriculture, and the tribes used the river for commerce. In

1673 French-Canadian explorer Louis Jolliet and French missionary and explorer

Jacques Marquette became the first Europeans to discover the Missouri when they

came across the lower river during a journey down the Mississippi. The lower

river became an important route for fur traders, who began to venture farther up

the river. During the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 to 1806, American

explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark became the first whites to explore

the river basin from its mouth to its headwaters. Steamboat traffic on the

Missouri began in 1819 with the voyage of the Independence, and soon steamboats

were taking settlers west, as well as hauling freight such as grain, fur,

lumber, and coal. Steamboat activity peaked in 1858, but then the construction

of railroads lessened traffic on the river. The lower portion of the river now

supports commercial barge lines, which carry agricultural products, steel, and

oil. In order to enhance navigability and provide flood control, hydroelectric

power, and irrigation, the Missouri River Basin Program was created in 1944.

Under this program and the subsequent Missouri Basin Program, a series of dams,

reservoirs, and locks were built on the river. However, in 1993 heavy rains

caused record-breaking flooding along the Missouri and other branches of the

Mississippi River. Further Reading Saskatchewan (river, Canada), river in

central Canada, 550 km (340 mi) long. It is formed in central Saskatchewan by

the confluence of the North Saskatchewan and South Saskatchewan rivers and flows

east into Manitoba, where it passes through Cedar Lake before emptying into Lake

Winnipeg. The North Saskatchewan River (1200 km/760 mi long) rises in the Rocky

Mountains of southwestern Alberta and flows east past Edmonton, Alberta, and

Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. The South Saskatchewan River (1390 km/865 mi long),

formed by the juncture of the Bow and Oldman rivers in southern Alberta, flows

northeast past Medicine Hat, Alberta, and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The

Saskatchewan River system stretches 2600 km (1600 mi) and drains most of the

western prairie. It was an important route in the fur trade of the 18th century

but has no navigational value today. The river system is widely used for

irrigation, however, and it has several hydroelectric facilities, notably

Gardiner Dam on the South Saskatchewan River, near Saskatoon, and Grand Rapids

Dam, at the mouth of the Saskatchewan River. Arapahoe Peak, mountain, northern

Colorado, in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, near Boulder; 4117 m

(13,506 ft) high. On the face of the peak is an ice field known as Arapahoe

Glacier. Blanca Peak, mountain, south central Colorado, in the Sangre de Cristo

Range of the Rocky Mountains, near Great Sand Dunes National Monument. It is

4372 m (14,345 ft) high and is one of the highest mountains in the state. Pikes

Peak, one of the most famous peaks in the Rocky Mountains, located in the Front

Range, central Colorado, near Colorado Springs. Although the elevation (4301

m/14,110 ft) of the peak is not the highest in the state, Pikes Peak is noted

for a commanding view. Tourists can ascend the mountain by three different

means: by horseback, by a cog railway approximately 14 km (9 mi) long, or by

automobile over a well-constructed road. Two springs, Manitou and Colorado, are

located near the foot of the mountain. On the summit of Pikes Peak is a

meteorological station. The peak was discovered in 1806 by the American explorer

and army officer Zebulon Montgomery Pike. It was first climbed in 1820.

Bufflehead, common name for a small north American diving duck. Its name is

derived from "buffalo-head," an allusion to the large size of its

short-billed head, especially in males, created by especially puffy feathers.

The body plumage of males is black and white above and white below, the head

glossy black with a large white patch from the eye to the back edge. Females are

dark brown, with a smaller white patch on the side of the head. Adults are about

38 cm (about 15 in) long. Buffleheads nest in wooded areas of Canada and the

Rocky Mountains, and winter on bays, lakes, rivers, and harbors. Scientific

classification: The bufflehead belongs to the tribe Mergini in the family

Anatidae. It is classified as Bucephala albeola. Grosbeak, common name for

several species of large-billed seed-eating birds of the fringillid, or finch,

family and of the emberizid family. Of the fringillid grosbeaks, only two are

found in North America: the relatively small billed pine grosbeak, of northern

coniferous forests around the world, and the very large billed evening grosbeak.

The latter species breeds in coniferous forests in Canada and the northernmost

United States, extending in the Rocky Mountains south to Mexico. It winters

irregularly in the United States, in some years invading in great numbers,

occasionally south to northern Florida. Until the 1950s it bred only as Far East

as Michigan and Ontario, but it then began expanding its range to New York, New

England, and the Maritime Provinces. Some attribute this expansion to better

winter survival, as many people put out sunflower seeds and other food for these

birds. Some cardinaline grosbeaks are entirely tropical. In North America the

best-known species are the rose-breasted grosbeak, of the east, and its western

counterpart, the black-headed grosbeak. In both the male is strikingly colored:

black and white with a bright-pink breast spot in the former, and black and

orange-brown in the latter. The females look like giant sparrows. The blue

grosbeak is found in the southern United States and Mexico. Males are rich blue

with brown wing bars, and females are dark brown. Scientific classification:

Grosbeaks belong to the families Fringillidae and Emberizidae, of the order

Passeriformes. They are sometimes all placed in either one of those families.

The pine grosbeak is classified as Pinicola enucleator, the evening grosbeak as

Coccothraustes vespertina (sometimes Hesperiphona vespertina), the rose-breasted

grosbeak as Pheucticus ludovicianus, the black-headed grosbeak as Pheucticus

melanocephalus, and the blue grosbeak as Guiraca caerulea. Grouse, common name

for 17 species of birds of the pheasant family, found around the world in the

northern hemisphere; two of the three species of ptarmigan inhabit both the

Americas and Eurasia. Grouse vary in size from males of the capercaillie, 86 cm

(34 in) long, of European coniferous forests, to the 32 cm (12.5 in)

white-tailed ptarmigan, of western North American Mountains. In most species the

sexes differ in color, but none have truly bright plumage. Bright colors are

limited to red or yellow comblike structures over the eyes, expanded during the

breeding season, or sacs of naked skin that inflate like balloons during

courtship displays. Mating systems are elaborate in most grouse, and in many the

males are polygamous, meeting in the spring at certain arenas where they compete

for mates. As highly popular game birds, grouse have been intensively studied.

Best known and most widely distributed of the American species is the ruffed

grouse, which occurs in woodlands from Alaska to Newfoundland, south to the

northern Rocky Mountains and the Appalachians. The name comes from a ruff of

black (rarely, coppery) feathers at the sides of the neck. These feathers are

larger in males than in females, and are spread widely during courtship

displays, when the male struts on a moss-covered log. This species is famous for

the springtime "drumming" of the males, a sound produced by the

beating of the wings against the air, as the male stands erect. The sound

carries a great distance, and resembles a noisy gasoline engine starting up. Two

other North American grouse, the blue grouse of western mountains and the more

widely distributed spruce grouse are confined to coniferous forests. The male

blue grouse has inflatable neck sacs, varying geographically in color from

yellow to reddish purple; the spruce grouse lacks such sacs. These two species

have been called "fool hens" because of their apparent fearlessness,

making them easy to hunt. Two species of prairie chicken, the closely related

sharp-tailed grouse, and the sage grouse, dwell in open country. The latter, an

inhabitant of sagebrush areas, especially in the Great Basin, is the largest

American grouse. Males reach 75 cm (30 in) in length; females are smaller (58

cm/23 in). During the communal courtship displays, males strut about with their

spiky tail feathers fanned out, and a pair of yellow sacs on their chests

inflated. Scientific classification: Grouse belong to the family Phasianidae of

the order Galliformes. The capercaillie is classified as Tetrao urogallus, the

white-tailed ptarmigan as Lagopus leucurus, and the ruffed grouse as Bonasa

umbellus. The blue grouse is classified as Dendragapus obscurus and the spruce

grouse as Dendragapus canadensis. Prairie chickens are classified in the genus

Tympanuchus. The sharp-tailed grouse is classified as Tympanuchus phasianellus

and the sage grouse as Centrocercus urophasianus. Further Reading Solitaire

(bird), common name applied to various species of American thrush. In the United

States, one species, Townsend’s solitaire, is found chiefly in the Rocky

Mountains. The bird is largely brownish gray in color, with a white-eye ring and

a buff wing patch. All solitaires are superb singers. Solitaire was also the

name of an extinct, flightless bird resembling the dodo. It inhabited Rodrigues,

an island in the Indian Ocean, until the last half of the 18th century.

Scientific classification: Solitaires belong to the family Turdidae of the order

Passeriformes. Townsend’s solitaire is classified as Myadestes townsendi. The

solitaire that is now extinct belongs to the family Raphidae, order

Columbiformes, and is classified as Pezophaps solitaria. Columbine (flower),

common name for certain perennial herbs with lacy, lobed leaves and delicate

flowers. Remarkably, both sepals and petals are colored, and the petals extend

to form a spur. The 40 known species are widely distributed in the North

Temperate Zone and show a prismatic range of color. North American and Eurasian

species, as well as a number of hybrids, are grown in gardens. Among the common

species are the wild columbine, with scarlet to pink flowers, native from Nova

Scotia to Texas, and the Colorado, or Rocky Mountain, columbine, with blue

flowers. Scientific classification: Columbines belong to the family

Ranunculaceae. Wild columbine is classified as Aquilegia canadensis. Colorado,

or Rocky Mountain, columbine is classified as Aquilegia caerulea. Indian

Paintbrush, common name for any of a genus of annual, biennial, and perennial

herbs (see Figwort). The genus, which contains about 200 species, is native to

the cooler portions of North and Central America and Asia, and to the Andes.

Because Indian paintbrushes, also called painted cups, are parasitic on the

roots of other plants, they have not been naturalized and have rarely been

cultivated away from their native habitat. The plants have long, hairy,

unbranched stems with alternate leaves. The uppermost leaves, or bracts, are

brilliantly colored and much showier than the inconspicuous interspersed

flowers. The flowers, which are borne in spikes, have a two-lobed calyx, a

two-lobed corolla, four stamens, and a solitary pistil. The corolla, which is

usually yellow, is encased within the calyx, and is usually indiscernible. The

fruit is a two-celled capsule. The common painted cup is the state flower of

Wyoming. The calyx of this plant is greenish white, but the bracts are intense

vermilion. The scarlet paintbrush is a common wild plant of the eastern United

States. The common Indian paintbrush is a hardy herb found in Canada and in the

mountainous regions of the northern United States from New England to the Rocky

Mountains. Its calyx is greenish white tinted with purplish red. Scientific

classification: Indian paintbrushes make up the genus Castilleja, of the family

Scrophulariaceae. The common painted cup is classified as Castilleja

linariaefolia, the scarlet paintbrush as Castilleja coccinea, and the common

Indian paintbrush as Castilleja septentrionalis. Sagebrush, common name applied

to any of several related aromatic, bitter shrubs, native to the plains and

mountains of western North America, but especially to the Great Basin, the

extensive desert region west of the Rocky Mountains in the United States.

Sagebrush is some of the few woody members of their family (see Composite

Flowers). The most common species in the United States is the common sagebrush,

a many-branched plant that grows from 0.3 to 6 m (1 to 20 ft) in height. It has

silvery, toothed leaves and terminal clusters of small, yellow flowers. A

similar species, the low sagebrush, attains a maximum height of 30 cm (1 ft) and

is abundant in the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. Because sagebrush often grows

in regions where there are few other woody plants, it is sometimes used for

fuel. In some areas the foliage is used as winter forage. Overgrazing of native

grasses has caused a proportionate increase in sagebrush. Scientific

classification: Sagebrush is classified in the genus Artemisia of the family

Compositae. The common sagebrush is classified as Artemisia tridentata. The low

sagebrush is classified as Artemisia arbuscula. Bighorn Sheep, largest and

best-known wild sheep of the North American continent, also called Rocky

Mountain sheep. They are found from southern British Columbia to northwestern

Mexico. A full-grown bighorn may average 101 cm (40 in) at the shoulder and

range in weight from 79 to 158 kg (175 to 350 lb). The great curved horns, which

may take more than one turn, attain a length of up to 127 cm (up to 50 in). The

ewes have smaller horns, seldom exceeding 38 cm (15 in). The coat is not woolly

but long, full, and coarse, like that of a goat. The animals have a short mating

season, during which the rams clash head-on in a battle for the ewes; for the

rest of the year the sheep usually divide into separate male and female herds.

The bighorns leap from ledge to ledge at great speed and grip slippery surfaces

with the shock-absorbing elastic pads of the feet. The animals have

exceptionally acute senses of sight, smell, and hearing. Two other varieties

found in northwest North America are the white sheep, or Dall sheep, and the

deep gray or grayish-brown Stone’s sheep. The bighorn is related to the Asian

argali, the mouflon, and the domestic sheep. Scientific classification: The

bighorn sheep belongs to the family Bovidae, in the order Artiodactyla. It is

classified as Ovis canadensis. Ground Squirrel, common name for certain

burrowing, terrestrial, western American rodents characterized by large cheek

pouches opening inside their mouths. Ground squirrels are often erroneously

called gophers. Like the true gophers, they are agricultural menaces, destroying

grass and grain. Their alternate name, spermophile (Greek for "seed

lover"), is derived from their usual diet. The ground squirrel resembles

both the prairie dog and the chipmunk. Most ground squirrels are brownish or

yellowish-gray, with light spots on the upper parts. Some species have

longitudinal stripes along their backs. In the northern part of their range they

hibernate during the winter; the duration of hibernation varies with the

environment, and in some species hibernation may extend from September to May.

Ground squirrels are found in open country, often in arid regions. The Great

Plains ground squirrel, found west of the Rocky Mountains, is typical of most of

the spermophiles. The rough-haired ground squirrel is 28 cm (11 in) long and has

an 8-cm (3-in) bushy tail. Its back is brown and its lower parts yellowish-gray;

it has a white chin and a white ring around each eye. The head is stubby, with

round, wide ears. The legs are short. These animals seek their food close to

their burrows. They mate after they emerge from hibernation in the spring; the

female bears 5 to 13 offspring at a time. The 13-striped spermophile, found near

the Mississippi River, has 7 grayish-yellow stripes running down its back,

interspersed with 6 stripes composed of spots. Its lower parts are fawn colored.

This animal subsists on mice, insects, and grain. Scientific classification:

Ground squirrels belong to the family Sciuridae. The Great Plains ground

squirrel is classified as Spermophilus elegans, the 13-striped ground squirrel

as Spermophilus tridecemlineatus. Further Reading Mule Deer, common name for a

large deer of the western and central United States, so called because of its

extremely large ears, which measure almost 25 cm (almost 10 in) in length. This

animal attains a height of 107 cm (42 in) at the shoulder. The name black-tailed

deer is sometimes applied to a subspecies of the mule deer inhabiting the Rocky

Mountains. The tail of this deer along the basal two-thirds is white above and

dark below; the terminal third is black. Scientific classification: The mule

deer belongs to the family Cervidae. It is classified as Odocoileus hemionus.

Rocky Mountain Goat, also mountain goat, common name of a species of antelope

that inhabits the high mountains from the northwestern United States to Alaska.

Mountain goats live in regions of heavy snowfall and tend to inhabit localities

with many crags and cliffs. They are excellent climbers, and their hooves, which

have soft pads rimmed with sharp edges, enable them to climb and run on snow,

ice, or bare rock. The Rocky Mountain goat is 90 to 120 cm (36 to 47 in) tall at

the shoulders. The body is sturdy and the legs are short and stout. Both sexes

have black horns, which contrast with the yellowish-white, shaggy hair covering

the entire body, and a beardlike tuft of hair underneath the chin. Rocky

Mountain goats are herbivorous ruminants, feeding on any exposed vegetation they

find. They are not gregarious, except during the mating season between November

and early January. The young are born generally between May and June. Scientific

classification: The Rocky Mountain goat belongs to the family Bovidae. It is

classified as Oreamnos americanus. Wolf, carnivore related to the jackal and

domestic dog. Powerful teeth, bushy tails, and round pupils characterize all

wolves. Certain characteristics of the skull distinguish them from domestic

dogs, some breeds of which they otherwise resemble. There are two species of

wolves: the gray, or timber, wolf, once widely distributed but now found only in

Canada, Alaska, and northern Europe and Russia, except for a few isolated packs

in other regions; and the red wolf, found only in Texas and the southeastern

United States. An adult gray wolf measures up to 2 m (6.5 ft) in length,

including the tail (less than half the body length), and weighs up to 80 kg (175

lb). The fur of the gray wolf is red-yellow or yellow-gray with black patches on

its back and sides, and white on its chest and abdomen. There are also black or

brown gray wolves, and those in the far north may be pure white. The red wolf is

smaller in size and usually darker in color. Wolves are equally at home on

prairies, in forest lands, and on all but the highest mountains. In the winter

they travel in packs searching for food. Small animals and birds are the common

prey of wolves, but a pack sometimes attacks reindeer, caribou, sheep, and other

large mammals, usually selecting weak, old, or very young animals for easier

capture. When no live prey can be found, wolves feed on carrion (decaying flesh

of dead animals). They also eat berries. The den, or lair, of a wolf may be a

cave, a hollow tree trunk, a thicket, or a hole in the ground dug by the wolf.

In the spring, females have litters of one to eleven pups. Adult wolves

sometimes feed young pups by regurgitating partly digested food for them. The

pups normally stay with the parents until the following winter but may remain

much longer. Parents and young constitute a basic pack, which establishes and

defends a territory marked by urine and feces. Larger packs may also assemble,

particularly in the winter. The pack leader is called the alpha male and his

mate is the alpha female. As social animals, wolves exhibit behavioral patterns

that clearly communicate dominance over or submission to one another. The

communal howling of a pack may serve to assemble its members, communicate with

other packs, advertise its territorial claims, or it may be simply a way of

expressing pleasure. Visual and scent signals are also important in

communication. Although gray wolves are still abundant across northern Europe

and Asia, only remnant populations exist elsewhere in Europe. Their numbers in

North America also have been greatly diminished. They are fairly abundant only

in Alaska and Canada; smaller numbers exist in the Pacific Northwest and upper

Midwest, primarily in Minnesota. Under the Endangered Species Act, the United

States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) as threatened in Minnesota and as an

endangered species elsewhere in the United States except Alaska list the gray

wolf. The red wolf, also listed as endangered species, was the first species for

which the USFWS developed a recovery plan. The decreasing numbers of wolves are

the result of encroachments on their territory by humans, who have long regarded

wolves as competitors for prey and as dangerous to livestock, pets, and people.

However, few if any healthy wolves have attacked humans, whom they instead try

to avoid. Wolves are valuable predators in the food web, and their decimation

has led to the overpopulation of certain other animal species in various areas.

Active efforts to reintroduce wolves to national parks in the United States are

now underway, although such efforts are controversial. Because coyotes have

hybridized with some red wolves, an attempt to reintroduce red wolves to parts

of North Carolina has involved identifying red wolves that are not part coyote.

The success of this project is not yet clear. In 1995 and 1996 the USFWS

reintroduced Canadian gray wolves into Yellowstone National Park and the

Sawtooth Mountain region in central Idaho, despite protests from nearby ranchers

and some biologists. The reintroduced wolves are producing more offspring than

expected. When ten breeding pairs reside in these regions for three years, the

gray wolf will be taken off the list of endangered species in the northern Rocky

Mountains. Wolf biologists estimate that this goal may be met by the year 2002

without transplanting additional wolves from Canada. By 1997 these

reintroduction efforts were succeeding beyond expectations of wolf biologists.

Scientific classification: The wolf belongs to the family Canidae. The gray, or

timber, wolf is classified as Canis lupus. The red wolf is classified as Canis

rufus.