Mesa Verde National Park ⓘ

The Navajo Nation is the largest tribe in the United States by both population and reservation size, which stretches across northeast Arizona, northwest New Mexico, and southeast Utah. Historically, Dine people have lived by a semi-nomadic mixture of hunting, gathering, farming, and herding. Mesa Verde, an area featured in many Dine stories and songs, sits just southwest of their sacred mountain of the north, Dibe Ntsaa, marking the northern boundary of the traditional Navajo homeland. Dine people from Shiprock, New Mexico have been of the primary builders of the park's roads and buildings at Mesa Verde, and some of the most skilled members of the Stabilization and Archeological team. The Navajo Nation maintains several museums within the reservation for visitors to learn more about Navajo culture in Tuba City and the capitol, Window Rock.

The National Park Service preserves historic places and stories of America's diverse cultural heritage. Explore and learn about more Places Reflecting America's Diverse Cultures .

This timeline presents selected moments recorded in written and oral histories. These events do not represent the beginning of human history at Mesa Verde, nor do they reflect a single, linear path of development.

For thousands of years, people have lived, traveled, farmed, hunted, prayed, and maintained relationships with this place. Many of those connections continue today. Some histories are marked by dates; others are carried through stories, practices, and living communities.

This timeline highlights one way of organizing events in time, while recognizing that Mesa Verde holds many histories, experienced and remembered in different ways .

Don Juan Maria de Rivera, under orders from New Mexico governor Tomas Velez Cachupin, led what was possibly the first expedition of white men northwest from New Mexico. Rivera’s men saw ancient structures but made no identifiable reference to Mesa Verde in their journals.

By 1859, several groups had entered the region, exploring both the north and south sides of Mesa Verde. The first European known to climb onto the mesa, was geologist Dr. John S. Newberry, a member of the 1859 San Juan Exploring Expedition. Although he didn’t record finding any ancestral sites, the expedition was the first to officially use the name Mesa Verde. The manner in which it was identified, suggests the name was already in common usage.

Pioneer photographer William Henry Jackson was photographing in the mountains northeast of Mesa Verde in August. There he met an old friend who introduced him to John Moss, a miner who had spent several years ranching and exploring near Mesa Verde. Moss offered to guide him to the ancient sites he and his men had found. With Moss leading the way into Mancos Canyon, Jackson entered Two Story House, and took the first photographs of a cliff dwelling in the Mesa Verde region. The photographs taken by Jackson that September helped call attention to the area.

The second cliff dwelling in the Mesa Verde area to be named was Sixteen Window House. William H. Holmes, leader of a geologic government survey, discovered and named the site found in Mancos Canyon .

The prospector S. E. Osborn spent the winter in the canyons of Mesa Verde and later wrote about many of the sites seen. His name and the date March 20, 1884, were carved in a nearby dwelling in lower Soda Canyon.

The first known suggestion that the area be set aside as a national park appeared in an editorial in the Denver Tribune Republican on December 12, 1886. The editor was concerned that "vandals of modern civilization" were destroying the sites and that the area needed federal or state protection.

Local rancher Richard Wetherill and his brothers made several trips into Mesa Verde, primarily for collecting archeological material. At least eight individual collections were assembled by the Wetherills during this period, several of which were later combined and sold in four collections. The first collection was sold to the Colorado Historical Society.

An article in the January 1 issue of the Durango Herald described Montezuma County’s view of setting aside the Mancos Canyon area with its cliff dwellings as a national park.

Baron Gustaf E. A. Nordenskiöld, of the Academy of Sciences in Sweden, using painstaking field methods for his time, excavated, sketched, and photographed numerous sites. He is credited by many as being the first scientist to visit Mesa Verde. He collected about 600 items which were sent to Sweden, and now reside in the National Museum in Helsinki, Finland. His book, The Cliff Dwellers of the Mesa Verde, was the first extensive examination and photographic record of Mesa Verde’s cliff dwellings.

The Colorado Cliff Dwellings Association was formed under the leadership of Virginia McClurg and Lucy Peabody. The organization’s sole purpose was to preserve the cliff dwellings of the Mesa Verde area. They promoted their campaign to make Mesa Verde a national park through letter writing, fund raising, and even tours of Mesa Verde for the press.

In February, 1901, the first bill was introduced before Congress to create "Colorado Cliff Dwellings National Park." The bill did not pass. At least four more bills were introduced during the following years, but all failed.

In 1905, a bill for the creation of Mesa Verde National Park was introduced in the 59th Congress. This bill was subsequently passed, and the park was created on June 29, 1906. The bill was signed by President Theodore Roosevelt.

Earlier that same year, on June 8, 1906, a bill called "an Act for the Preservation of American Antiquities," or more commonly, the "1906 Antiquities Act," was passed. This act made it a federal crime to collect or destroy any historic or prehistoric object or building on federally owned land.

Excavation and repair of major sites began so visitors could see and enjoy the park. Most of the early work was done by Jesse Walter Fewkes, an archeologist from the Smithsonian Institution.

Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal program launched in 1933, brought the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to Mesa Verde. The CCC and other depression era efforts employed young men and women to build trails and roads, operate switchboards, help in archaeological excavations, fight fires, build park buildings, and create museum exhibits.

The Wetherill Mesa Archeological Project ranks among the biggest archeological studies ever performed in the United States. The project included archeological surveys, excavations, stabilization, and documentation of various sites. In total, the project excavated eleven sites on Wetherill Mesa, including Long House, the second largest cliff dwelling in the park.

To protect certain areas of the park in a wilderness status, Congress set aside 8,500 acres known as Mesa Verde Wilderness (PL 94-567, 90 Stat. 2692) under the provisions of the Wilderness Act (78 Stat. 890).

Mesa Verde National Park joined a select group of areas designated by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as a World Heritage Cultural Site.

Five large wildfires burned over 50% of the park’s acreage. Subsequent BAER (Burned Area Emergency Response) surveys located previously unknown archeological sites that were revealed by the fires. New sites included lithic scatters, farming terraces, petroglyphs, hand-and-toe-hold trails, as well as a few small alcove sites.

A yearlong celebration of Mesa Verde National Park’s 100th anniversary included events such as opening and closing ceremonies, a birthday party, special tours, and a lecture series.

In consultation with the park’s associated tribes and in accordance with the NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act), a private repatriation ceremony took place in the spring of 2006. All Native American human remains and associated grave goods found within park boundaries were reburied in an undisclosed park location. The reburial was a result of 12 years of consultation with the park’s associated tribes and was performed by both park staff and the Hopi tribe.

Grand opening of the new Mesa Verde Visitor and Research Center, including a state-of-the-art archival and artifact collections facility.

Mesa Verde National Park’s museum collection consists of objects, archives, and specimens relating to the people, history, and natural resources of the Park. The collection is primarily stored within the state-of-the-art LEED Platinum Visitor and Research Center built in 2012. Curation staff are responsible for the care and management of, as well as access to the museum collection. Care of collections includes maintaining optimal environmental conditions for a wide variety of material types, preservation and conservation work, contamination testing, organization, and proper handling and storage. Collections management ensures accountability through database management, documentation, and inventory. Curation staff also provide access to collections through exhibitions, research appointments, finding aids, and collections photography.

The collection totals approximately 2.5 million items with a wide range of collection types. The largest collection is archives, reports, correspondence, and photographs generated by park personnel and activities. These are followed in quantity by pre-contact archeological objects from the cliff dwellings and mesa top sites, such as pottery, tools, and sandals. The park also has an array of scientific specimens obtained via permits, like pressed plants, pinned insects, and geological specimens, and art and ethnology objects from traditionally associated Tribes. Mesa Verde National Park also houses two high-profile collections. Architect Mary Jane Colter donated her Indigenous jewelry and art to Mesa Verde in 1947. In 2018, the Estate of David Rockefeller donated the Collection of David and Peggy Rockefeller to Mesa Verde, consisting of Indigenous art collected by the Rockefellers during their trips to the Western United States. These collections tell vital stories about the history of the park and peoples’ ongoing and changing relationship to the land and each other and are an integral piece of our nation’s heritage.

Viewing portals at the Visitor and Research Center allow visitors to see into the collections repository and the collections processing room. Interactive screens provide 3D views of select objects for visitors to view and learn about in-depth. Exhibits in the Visitor and Research Center as well as in the Chapin Mesa Museum show a diverse range of items from the collection.

Objects and archives are available for researchers to access onsite at the Visitor and Research Center. Onsite research is by appointment only and dependent on staff availability. Appointment hours are 8 am-noon, 1 pm-4 pm, Monday-Friday, mountain time. Curation staff request two weeks’ notice for onsite appointment requests. Researchers are expected to complete a Researcher Registration Form and adhere to all object handling guidelines and instructions provided by curation staff. For information on the status of accessing the collection for research purposes, please contact Museum Curator/NAGPRA Coordinator Gwenn Gallenstein at Gwenn_Gallenstein@nps.gov or at 970-529-4614. The Mesa Verde Visitor and Research Center is located at 34840 Highway 160, Mancos, CO 81328.

Mesa Verde National Park was established in 1906 to preserve archeological sites built by the Ancestral Puebloans. Currently Mesa Verde has over 4,700 archeological sites with many more yet to be discovered. The mission of the archeological program at Mesa Verde National Park is to conduct, encourage and facilitate archeological and ethnographic research focused on prehistoric and historic occupations in Mesa Verde, and to link research results to the regional histories of the northern San Juan and the greater Southwest. Our focus is to enhance and share knowledge of the Ancestral Puebloan culture, and to ensure that archeological sites are preserved for the benefit of future generations. Our mission will be accomplished by maintaining a highly trained and diverse staff in support of site preservation and quality archeological research that sustains current and future goals and objectives.

The caretaking of these sites is done through a variety of disciplines and personnel, and can be viewed by clicking on any of the links below:

The Archeological Site Conservation Program was created in 1994 as a means to link the many disciplines of archeological research and preservation activities that take place in the over 600 cliff dwellings that contain standing architecture. more...

In response to the recent large wildfires, large scale Post Fire New Site Survey projects have occurred 10 out of the past 12 years. A total of 682 new archeological sites were discovered and recorded during the surveys. more...

Mesa Verde archeologists team with many Partners that conduct specialized archeological research including rock art and historical inscription documentation. more...

Click here to see some of the research publications written by Mesa Verde archeologists that are available from the Mesa Verde Museum Association bookstore. more...

Since its 'discovery' in 1888 Cliff Palace has been the focus of early exploration, commercial exploitation, archeological investigations, and generations of visitors to Mesa Verde National Park. Throughout this history the imposing structure has also seen the development of innovative preservation strategies designed to halt and stabilize the continuing effects of natural and cultural agents of deterioration. As the centerpiece of Mesa Verde National Park, it remains one of the finest examples of a late prehistoric cliff dwelling in the American Southwest.

Cliff Palace challenges visitors to imagine what life was like over seven hundred years ago. Constructed of stone masonry, wood, and earth covered with plaster painted in a variety of colors; the structures that compose Cliff Palace reflect traces of everyday events: the mundane chores of food preparation and storage, private and public spaces, concern for defensive protection, village organization, and solemn ritual. These same buildings and spaces also reveal intentional design, subtle details of craftsmanship, and reliance upon construction materials and methods (structural systems) in use for hundreds of years. Collectively, these two views of Cliff Palace provide a way of understanding the past and the challenges we face at present to preserve this ancient place.

The preservation of Cliff Palace inspires visitors to imagine what life was like over seven hundred years ago. But the task of preserving this nearly eight century old site has its challenges as well as its rewards. Please use the following pages to learn about Preserving Cliff Palace .

The Archeological Site Conservation Program (ASCP) mission is to preserve the 600 cliff dwellings with standing architecture in Mesa Verde National Park. By visiting these sites to assess their condition, carefully record architectural details, and maintain them through repair, we ensure that the sites are preserved for the benefit of future generations.

The ASCP is organized into three levels of documentation. Click each link to learn about the Site Survey, Condition Assessment, and Architectural Documentation programs at Mesa Verde.

Site Survey Data serves as the baseline data for all known sites in the park and is required documentation at all newly discovered sites. more...

Condition Assessment builds on the Site Survey Data and is required documentation at all sites containing standing masonry walls. All walls are assessed for condition and future stabilization needs. more...

Architectural Documentation is the most detailed level of documentation and occurs before any stabilization treatments take place. more...

As a result of recent large wildfires, Post-Fire Site Survey projects have occurred 10 out of the past 12 years. A total of 682 new archeological sites were discovered and recorded during the surveys. Archeologists have discovered that the Ancestral Puebloans were even more successful farmers than originally believed. Post-fire surveys have led to the recordation of many more check dams and water control features than in previous surveys. These features typically consist of retaining walls placed on slopes in order to direct water to catchment features or to agricultural plots.

After each wildfire, teams of archeologists survey the fire areas and assess, document, and treat previously recorded and newly discovered sites. Treatment methods include reseeding to promote vegetation growth, placement of erosion control features such as log diverters to direct water away from sites, and the installation of silicone driplines in cliff dwellings.

For more information on how past wildfires have affected the park’s cultural resources and the archeological response, go to Archeology and Fire . (pdf, 285 kb)

From the late 13th century to 1880s, Cliff Palace slowly deteriorated from the effects of water, wind, freeze/thaw cycles, differential fill levels, a variety of animals, spalling of the alcove roof, and the inherent qualities of the prehistoric structures themselves. Over the course of six centuries, Cliff Palace was visually transformed from an imposing assemblage of buildings,courtyards, and subterranean kivas to an array of stone structures rising from tons of rubble and debris. Still remarkably impressive, the effects of time were nevertheless evident. However, with the 'discovery' of Cliff Palace in the late 1800s, this gradual process of decay rapidly accelerated. Casual visitation and commercial exploration employed everything from pick and shovel to dynamite in an effort to recover all types of artifacts. In the end, the form and fabric of Cliff Palace was heavily damaged throughout its extent, with the natural processes of deterioration now altered by human activity.

With the establishment of Mesa Verde National Park in 1906, the despoliation of the late 1800s was replaced by an emerging preservation ethic determined to halt the damage. Through the efforts of Smithsonian archeologist Jesse Walter Fewkes, field methods designed to excavate and collect artifacts were modified to identify and understand the effects of unrestrained looting upon standing architecture, buried features, and archeological deposits. In addition, Fewkes realized the importance of preparing archeological sites for visitation. He believed it was only through direct experience, literally being able to walk through a cliff dwelling, that the American public could appreciate and support the preservation of Mesa Verde's archeological resources. To accomplish this goal, Fewkes, along with many of his contemporaries, invented the practice of ruins stabilization. Although certainly limited by the use of incompatible materials, construction techniques, and somewhat fanciful reconstructions, there seems little doubt that the history of ruins stabilization within Mesa Verde National Park fundamentally contributed to the development of contemporary Conservation Archeology.

As the largest and most famous cliff dwelling in Mesa Verde National Park, Cliff Palace is the park's interpretive centerpiece. Many of the half million visitors each year make it a point to stop and see Cliff Palace, either through magnificent views from one of the nearby overlooks or by taking a ranger-guided interpretive hike into the cliff dwelling itself. Until recently, one of the key components of a Cliff Palace interpretive tour was Kiva F, a 13th century circular structure located in the southern portion of the alcove. Partially subterranean, the structure was built on top of loose fill, sandstone slabs, and cultural debris. Surrounding Kiva F are Kivas C and G, an assemblage of multistory rooms, and retaining walls that ascend toward the back of the alcove. As each ranger-guided hike (on average 15 tours and 740 visitors per day or roughly 3,962 tours and 160,600 visitors per year ) moved through the site, they walk up a short set of steps and stand around Kiva F on a heavily stabilized pathway. Here the ranger discusses the character, function, and significance of a kiva to the Ancestral Pueblo people, and visitors have the opportunity to spend a few moments in thought. It was during one of these hikes in early summer, 2011 that a ranger observed what appeared to be a problem.

Just below the stabilized path, a small void had appeared in the masonry bench or banquette accompanied by the north wall now leaning precariously into the structure. In response, National Park Service archeologists began an evaluation of Kiva F to determine overall condition and potential causes. The team reviewed previous preservation treatments that had addressed water penetration, localized cracks, displaced segments of wall, and loss of mortar and stone. They then examined the void and extent of wall deflection, and weighed various options to stabilize the problem. As a remedial measure, a wooden brace was installed to support the north wall over a weekend, and the ranger-guided hikes were re-routed to avoid Kiva F.

When the team returned the following Monday, they were confronted with a more complex problem. While they focused on the north wall of Kiva F, a large portion of the south wall unexpectedly fell onto the Kiva floor. With no prior indication of an impending collapse, this event suggested underlying conditions that extended far beyond the structural boundaries of the kiva, potentially threatening much of the southern half of Cliff Palace. Further assessment of the surrounding structures, notably Kiva G just to the north of Kiva F, further reinforced these observations. What followed was the decision to expand the scope of investigation beyond Kiva F to include more detailed study of earlier stabilization efforts, comprehensive condition assessment of 102 architectural units (roughly the southern half of the site), and yet another look at the long-standing problem of water entering the alcove through cracks on the mesa top above Cliff Palace.

After months of exhaustive study, by July of 2012, it appeared that both localized deterioration of individual structures and features, as well as site wide systemic problems indicative of structural failure, were working in tandem.

While the collapse of Cliff Palace was and is not imminent, the combination of ongoing deterioration of individual features and structures along with an unpredictable foundation will eventually result in loss of architecture and archeological deposits. Fortunately, the cracks, voids, and leaning walls noted above provided critical clues to understanding what was causing the deterioration at time, how quickly it was occurring, if it was happening throughout the site or only in specific areas, and what steps we could take to slow or stop the process.

The root of Cliff Palace's structural problems is the foundation –or the lack of a stable foundation –upon which the entire southern end of the community was built in the 13th century. Although the northern areas appear firmly based on bedrock, the southern end is footed in loose, unconsolidated soil and rubble. After nearly eight centuries, this lack of a solid base has caused the structures in the southern end of the site to slide downhill at uneven rates, leading to cracks, falling walls, and general instability. Work will continue on the site as needed to monitor, assess, and stabilize Cliff Palace as needed.

Over the past 12 years the Archeological Site Conservation Program (ASCP) at Mesa Verde National Park has shared its archeological expertise with many other southwestern area public lands. This support has ranged from sharing methods, forms and database standards, and staff in order to complete documentation and preservation projects. ASCP staff members from Mesa Verde have worked at archeological sites at Hovenweep NM, Navajo NM, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Canyonlands NP, Glen Canyon NRA, Gila Cliff Dwellings NM, Salinas Pueblo Missions NHP, and at sites managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Utah and Colorado, and at Forest Service properties in Colorado.

Fort Lewis College (FLC) located in Durango, Colorado, has established a unique program to provide internships for undergraduate students to work with park professionals at Mesa Verde National Park. Since 2002, this program has paired student interns with national park professionals and FLC mentoring faculty members. Intern projects at Mesa Verde have included archeology, natural resource management, curation, park planning, visitor education and interpretation, and GIS. Students who take advantage of the archeological internships benefit by gaining field experience in some of the best-preserved archeological sites in the world. For the college, internships provide an arena for the practical application of academic concepts and classroom training, and such programs enhance the professional interaction of two institutions with similar educational goals. For the park, fostering a relationship with the college can also provide a professional resource for programs, access to skilled and interested personnel, and provide low-cost professional-level help for specific tasks. Whether or not these experiences translate to career choices for the students, they embody real-world learning and service experiences in a supportive work environment.

The internship program has been possible through the help of additional support from the Colorado State Historical Fund , the Mesa Verde Museum Association , the Fort Lewis College Foundation , and other funding sources from Mesa Verde National Park.

In 1994, The National Park Service and the Architectural Conservation Laboratory and Research Center (ACL) of the University of Pennsylvania began a collaboration effort to help preserve many of the earthen finishes still present in some cliff dwellings. The Conservation of Architectural Surfaces Program for Archeological Resources was designed to develop coordinated methods for the survey, analysis, stabilization, and interpretation of the masonry and architectural surface finishes in the cliff dwellings of Mesa Verde National Park. Funding for this effort has been provided by The Getty Grant Program, National Park Service, Colorado Historical Society, The Samuel H. Kress Foundation, and the Ballantine Family Fund. This partnership has resulted in the documentation and treatment of surface finishes at several cliff dwellings in the park, including Cliff Palace, Spruce Tree House, and Long House.

The Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, located in southwestern Colorado, is dedicated to understanding, teaching, and preserving the rich history of the Ancestral Pueblo Indians who inhabited the canyons and mesas of the Mesa Verde region more than 700 years ago. Mesa Verde National Park and Crow Canyon have partnered over the years to map Yucca House National Monument and to interpret the prehistory of the area. In 2007, Crow Canyon and Mesa Verde again worked together to study the effects of long-term interaction between humans, their cultures, and the environment within what is now the national park. This project uses computer models to determine the amount of resources available to Ancestral Puebloan populations during their occupation of the mesa and where those resources were most plentiful. Research is ongoing and findings from this project will add significantly to the overall interpretation of the prehistoric occupation of the park.

CyArk is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to digitally preserve cultural heritage sites through collecting, archiving, and providing open access to data created by laser scanning, digital modeling, and other state-of-the-art technologies. Using staff from Texas Tech University, CyArk has created digital maps and images of some of the buildings in Spruce Tree House, Fire Temple, and Square Tower House. You can view the maps at www.cyark.org .

The Archeological Site Conservation Program has enjoyed the support of many private, federal and state financial contributors who share similar kinds of resource management responsibilities. In particular, the Colorado State Historical Fund assisted with getting the program underway with grants for rock art documentation, plaster preservation, and tree ring studies, and for archeological documentation projects at Cliff Palace and Spruce Tree House.

Mesa Verde National Park also received a Save America's Treasures (SAT) grant in 1999. This was the first SAT grant awarded to support prehistoric resources. This program allowed an interdisciplinary staff to assess the condition of close to 150 of the park's 600 cliff dwelling sites. In addition, a grant from Tauck Tours and the Traveler's Conservation Association assisted with the condition assessment and architectural documentation condition assessment of Spruce Tree House, the most heavily visited site in the park.

The Getty Grant Program supported plaster preservation research at a number of park sites, including Mug House. The World Monuments Fund, and its sponsor American Express, assisted with detailed documentation work at Spring House, a large and unique site in the Mesa Verde backcountry.

Working under the auspices of the National Park Service's Vanishing Treasures Program , operational partnerships with other NPS units has led to non-destructive archeological work at Inscription House in Arizona, Gila Cliff Dwellings in southern New Mexico, the individual units of Hovenweep National Monument, and many other parks and monuments.

Mesa Verde (Spanish for green table), occupies just over 52,000 acres of the Colorado Plateau. The correct geological term for the area is cuesta. Cuestas are similar to mesas, but instead of being relatively flat, they gently dip in one direction. Mesa Verde is inclined slightly to the south at about a seven degree angle and has been highly dissected by wind and water erosion into a series of canyons and “mesas.” Elevations range from about 6,000 feet in the canyon bottoms near the southern park boundary to 8,572 feet at Park Point, about ten miles north.

Mesa Verde's climate is semi-arid, with an average annual precipitation of 18.4 inches. The park lies in the transition zone between the arid scrublands to the south and the forested montane environment of the Rocky Mountains to the north. It supports four major plant communities: The shrub-steppe community is found in the lowest elevations and includes sagebrush valleys. As elevation increases, the communities change from shrub-steppe, to pinyon-juniper forests, to mountain shrub communities, and finally to areas of Douglas-fir and Ponderosa pine. Each environment has characteristics that favor certain plants while limiting others. For instance, prickly pear cactus can be found on dry, sunny, rocky soils, whereas Douglas-fir is found in shaded, moist areas with deeper soils. Numerous seep springs created from the juncture of Cliff House sandstone and Menefee shale provide microclimatic conditions for more moisture loving plant species such as mosses and ferns.

As parks strive to maintain and, in many cases, restore natural processes and ecosystems inside their boundaries, accomplishment of these mandated goals can be confounded by outside activities and actions. Parks do not exist in vacuums, but are connected to the larger landscape that surrounds them. All parks today face threats from invasions of nonnative species, pollution from near and far, climate change , and incompatible uses of resources in and around parks. In spite of its geographic isolation, Mesa Verde also contends with environmental issues.

Mesa Verde is in the Colorado Plateau Province characterized by deep canyons, high elevation and an arid climate. These factors shape the plant species that grow at the park. Pinyon-juniper woodlands, mixed herb grasslands, and mountain shrubland are the largest plant communities at Mesa Verde supporting many of the park's flora. Over 640 species of plants occur in Mesa Verde National Park. These include approximately 556 species of vascular plants, 75 species of fungi, 21 species of moss, and 151 species of lichen. In addition, a number of rare endemic species occur in Mesa Verde that are found nowhere else. There are also about 80 species of non-native plants that have invaded the park, some of which have been classified as invasive, noxious weeds which, by law, means they must be controlled.

Listed below are the best locations to view and understand the plant life in Mesa Verde National Park. Wayside exhibits and trail guides will assist you in identifying the park vegetation. Please remember that picking wildflowers, killing or collecting any plant in the park is against the law.

Natural Communities Mesa Verde lies in the transition zone between the arid scrublands to the south and the forested montane environment of the Rocky Mountains to the north. The climate is semi-arid, with an average annual precipitation of 18.4 inches. The park supports four major plant communities. At the lowest elevation is the shrub-steppe community that includes sagebrush valleys. Then as you gain elevation, you move through pinyon-juniper forests, to mountain shrub communities, and finally to areas of Douglas-fir and Ponderosa pine. Each environment has characteristics that favor certain plants while limiting others. For instance, prickly pear cactus can be found on dry, sunny, rocky soils, whereas Douglas-fir is found in shaded, moist areas with deeper soils. Numerous seep springs created from the juncture of Cliff House sandstone and Menefee shale provide microclimatic conditions for more moisture loving plant species such as mosses and ferns.

Mesa Verde is much more than a cultural park. It protects an extraordinary landscape: a high desert island in the sky home to a diverse and unique community of life found nowhere else on earth.

Mesa Verde contains several habitats that support a great diversity of resident and migratory wildlife. The park has been named a Colorado Important Bird Area (IBA) by the Audubon Society, and has two Protected Activity Centers and three breeding Core Areas for the threatened Mexican Spotted Owl totaling 5,312 acres. The Colorado Natural Heritage Program and The Nature Conservancy have classified all of Mesa Verde National Park within their Network of Conservation Areas (NCA) because of exceptional occurrences of rare plant and animal species.

The park's geographic isolation and its location in a geographic transition zone, help provide niches for this wide variety of animal species. Currently, about 74 species of mammals, 200 species of birds, 16 species of reptiles, five species of amphibians, six species of fishes (four of which are native), and over 1,000 species of insects and other invertebrates spend at least part of the year within park boundaries. Some animal species, such as the native fishes and amphibians, are confined to rather narrow econiches in a single biotic community. Others, such as coyote, deer, and other large mammals, are found in a wide range of habitats.

Ecological relationships, such as with the rare Black Swallowtail Butterfly who's larvae feed on one of the park's rare endemic plants, the Mesa Verde Wandering Aletes, are found in the park. If we lose the plant, the butterfly may disappear as well. Some insects found in Mesa Verde and Yucca House in recent years are entirely new to Colorado and to science or to Colorado, such as the Mesa Verde tiger beetle and the Anasazi digger bee.

As you visit Mesa Verde, please remember that approaching, feeding, harassing, hunting, trapping or capturing any wild animal in the park is against the law. For more information, visit Observing Wildlife .

For lists of species found in Mesa Verde National Park, visit the Mammals , Birds , and Reptiles/Amphibians/Fish pages.

As parks strive to maintain and, in many cases, restore natural processes and ecosystems inside their boundaries, accomplishment of these mandated goals can be confounded by outside activities and actions. Parks do not exist in vacuums, but are connected to the larger landscape that surrounds them. All parks today face threats from invasions of nonnative species, pollution from near and far, and incompatible uses of resources in and around parks. In spite of its geographic isolation, Mesa Verde also contends with environmental issues.

Although most of the land within the park boundaries was not settled in historic times, it has not escaped the sometimes adverse influences of human activity. These activities include the introduction of exotic or invasive plant species; declining air quality due to emissions from nearby coal-burning power plants and visitor and staff vehicles; deteriorating water quality and quantity in the Mancos River due to upstream agricultural uses; physical wear-and-tear as a result of heavy visitation; and grazing and trampling by trespass horses that stray into the park from the adjoining Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation.

Mesa Verde also has environmental issues of natural origin that must also be monitored and managed. For example, large-scale wildfires have destroyed over 36,000 acres of old-growth forests and shrublands in the park since 1989. Although there are signs of regrowth, and some areas have been reseeded with native grasses, the natural plant succession in the burned pinyon-juniper forest is being disrupted by an invasion of aggressive, nonnative plant species such as musk thistle and cheatgrass. The dominance of these “invasive weeds” could potentially prevent the natural regeneration of a fully mature pinyon-juniper forest. Each year, the seasonal vegetation crew works hard to reduce the negative effects of the nonnatives. Their goal is to minimize the spread, or where possible, eradicate them through a variety of methods such as applying herbicides, releasing insects that feed on the weeds, reseeding with native plants, or manual/mechanical removal.