page_title: Ecology of the Rocky Mountains
section_title: Alpine tundra
hierarchical_section_title: Ecology of the Rocky Mountains / Biotic zones / Alpine tundra
caption_attribution_description: Sky pilot, alpine buttercup, and old-man-of-the-mountain in full bloom at 12,100' on Copper Mountain.
context_page_description: The ecology of the Rocky Mountains is diverse due to the effects of a variety of environmental factors. The Rocky Mountains are the major mountain range in western North America, running from the far north of British Columbia in Canada to New Mexico in the southwestern United States, climbing from the Great Plains at or below 1,800 feet to peaks of over 14,000 feet. Temperature and rainfall varies greatly also and thus the Rockies are home to a mixture of habitats including the alpine, subalpine and boreal habitats of the Northern Rocky Mountains in British Columbia and Alberta, the coniferous forests of Montana and Idaho, the wetlands and prairie where the Rockies meet the plains, a different mix of conifers on the Yellowstone Plateau in Wyoming and in the high Rockies of Colorado and New Mexico, and finally the alpine tundra of the highest elevations.
context_section_description: Alpine tundra is a complex of high-elevation meadows, fell (barren) fields, and talus or scree (rock) slopes above treeline. Depending on latitude, treeline occurs between 3,400 and 4,000 metres (11,200 and 13,100 ft) in the United States, and 2,200 and 2,450 metres (7,220 and 8,040 ft) in Canada. Grasses and sedges dominate the meadow communities, and fens (a type of wet meadow) and willows exist in wet soils. Vegetation in the alpine zone is similar to that in the Arctic: 47% of the plant species in the alpine zone of the Beartooth Mountains in Wyoming and Montana are also found in the Arctic. This high-diversity area includes alpine sage, tufted hairgrass, clovers, pussytoes, and succulents, and hundreds of grasses and wildflower species.
caption: Flowers in an alpine meadow at Copper Mountain, Colorado
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