The summer of 2002 was the seventh season for the Rocky Mountain Butterfly project. Volunteer Rich Bray, and his field assistants, monitored butterfly populations on a weekly basis along transects in various park habitats. To date, they have identified 125 butterfly species in the park.
Biologists believe that trends in butterfly populations may provide early warning of the impacts of global warming on the park's flora and fauna.
Did You Know?
The oldest rocks in the park are metamorphic (biotite schist and gneiss) estimated at 1.7 billion years old, making them some of the oldest rocks within the National Park System.