Above Treeline
Above the Subalpine zone, whose upper limit is treeline, lies the Alpine, or Arctic-Alpine, zone. This is the distinctive “Land of Lilliput” of the plant kingdom, the alpine tundra, where nearly all existing plant species are in dwarf form. Some of the zone is barren rock, with only algae and lichen growth. Vast expanses of it, however, are covered with a cold, wet soil mantle which, during the brief summertime, presents a myriad of low, cushionlike flower clumps. Sometimes—usually through July—the effect is that of a vast carpet of flowers. The list of plant species is great. Showiest of the alpine flowers are ALPINE BUTTERCUP, with large, yellow, poppylike flowers, often blooming at the very edges of snowbanks; ALPINE FORGET-ME-NOT, which grows in dense, low clumps and presents thick patches of bright-blue flowers; MOSS SILENE (“moss campion”), a mosslike cushion plant with pink flowers (also found in Greenland and Alaska); GRAYLOCKS ACTINEA, sometimes called “Old Man of the Mountain,” with bright-yellow flower heads, usually wind-blown and ragged, almost as broad as the plant is tall; TUFTED PHLOX, better known here as “alpine phlox,” the cushion of which is sometimes entirely covered with pale-blue or white flowers; AMERICAN BISTORT, with dense spikes of tiny flowers standing like miniature bottle brushes above the tundra grasses; KINGS CROWN, a fleshy plant with dark-red blossoms, the whole plant often turning completely red in late summer; and MT. WASHINGTON DRYAD, with its curious 8-petaled, cream-colored flowers.
Limber pine at treeline.
Tundra is characteristically composed of grasses, sedges, herbs, and a few dwarfed shrubs. Many lichens and mosses also grow in tundra. The plants are typically small, low-growing, and compact, and often have showy flowers. There seems to be an abundance of blossoms in proportion to the size and amount of foliage of the plants. Their small leaves are protected from excessive water loss by masses of hairs or waxy substances, and they frequently contain high amounts of red pigment. Most of these plants are exceedingly slow-growing; some of those you see may be a hundred to several thousand years old.
The story of the park’s trees and flowers is intensely interesting, but can best be understood by more careful study than is possible in this booklet. Several excellent botanical bulletins are available, and we urge you to invest in one of them.
ANIMAL LIFE
A National Park is a spacious natural reserve, and in it those creatures that have survived through the past are protected from harm by humans. They are not protected from each other, there being no attempt to change natural relationships of predator and prey.
Since the animals are in their natural habitats, and not in cages, you may not be able to see at close range the kinds of animals you may want to see at any time you like. Instead, you must expect to see them at their convenience, not yours. This requires careful, patient watching, but the rewards are great for the observant outdoorsman. An occasional glimpse of a bull elk grazing free in his native meadow may be more satisfying than the most detailed inspection of a confined creature in a zoological garden. Our society needs both types of experiences.
Although there are about 35 species of mammals in the park, this booklet can present brief descriptions of only a few of those likely to be of greatest interest.