Colorado Life Zones Information

and the Animals that live there

Colorado Life Zones Info	General Information
Colorado Life Zone Map	This website was made solely for educational purposes (no profit). The pictures were taken from google images and all rights belong to the original artists, websites, or photographers. Its goal is to give visual and factual information to help elementary kids to better understand Colorado's life zones and the animals that live there. Colorado has many different landforms that make it special. On the Eastern part of the state is the Great Plains. Down the center of the state is the spectacular Rocky Mountains. In the Western part of the state is the Colorado Plateau. The state also has many rivers, lakes, ponds, mesas, canyons, and many more landforms. Because of the diverse landforms, Colorado has many different types of habitats or life zones (unique places where animals and plants live). To learn more, click on these topics: elevation and climate; seasons, water, and animals; and adaptations of plants and animals. OR to find out more about a specific life zone click on the names of the life zones on the side.
Desert (Southwest CO)
Plains
Foothills Life Zone
Montane Life Zone
Subalpine Life Zone
Alpine Life Zone
Riparian Life Zone
Plants and Trees of CO

Elevation (How high it is above sea level) and Climate (how hot or cold it gets and how much precipitation it recieves)	Elevation and Life Zones	Plains and Desert Southwest: 4000-5999 ft above sea level Foothills Life Zone: 6,000 to 7,999 ft. above sea level Montane Life Zone: 8,000 to 9,999 ft above sea level Subalpine Life Zone: 10,000 to 11.499 ft. above sea level Alpine Life Zone: 11,500 ft above sea level and above Riparian Life Zone: anywhere near major lakes, ponds, streams, or rivers
	Elevation and Temperature	The higher in elevation you go the colder the temperature gets. For example, the Subalpine life zone is a lot higer in elevation than the Desert Southwest. So, it will be much cooler up in the subalpine.
	Elevation and Precipitation (rain or snow)	The higher in elevation you go the more precipitation falls there. The lower elevations of Colorado like the desert southwest and the Great Plains get little precipitation. The higher elevations like the montane, subalpine, and alpine life zones catch more moisture (water) from the clouds. Since the elevations like the subalpine and alpine life zones are lot higher (colder and get more precipitation), the moisture in the clouds turns to lots of important snow.
	Elevation and Air	Hows the air up the there? Did you know that air has different density. Air is made of lots and lots and lots of tiny atoms (way more than anyone could count) that are flying around and bouncing off one another. As you get higher in elevation there are less of the atoms bouncing off one another. This means there is less oxygen for you to breath. Way up in the alpine it may take you two breaths in just to get the same amount of oxygen you get in one breath at lower elevations. You get out of breath and tired much quicker in the alpine than down in the plains.
	Did You Know	In fact some people even get altitude sickness because they can not breathe in enough oxygen. You lose most of your energy, get dizzy, and have a difficult time thinking and making decisions. It can be very dangerous! If you start feeling this way when you are high in the mountains, then you need to head toward lower elevations to get more oxygen.
Seasons	Seasons and water	Seasons are really important for the water cycle in Colorado. In the winter lots of important snow falls in the mountainous montane, subalpine, and alpine life zones. There it stays until the spring and the summer. The warmer summer temperatures melt the snow. All the water goes to the streams and rivers. Thats where the water in the Colorado River comes from! Believe it or not, you could play in large piles of snow all year in the alpine life zone.
Seasons	Seasons and animals	Many animals live in different life zones depending on the season of the year. For example, mule deer live in the montane and subalpine life zones during the summer. But, when winter comes they move to the lower parts of the montane and foothills. They do this because they can no longer find their food up higher. It is covered under lots snow!
Adaptations	Plants	In order to survive plants have adapted (changed) so that they can live in different life zones. Decidious plants like aspens and cottonwood trees grow lots of leaves in the spring and summer, collect lots of sunlight, food and energy, then decide to lose their leaves in the fall to save energy over the cold winter. Coniferous plants like pine trees (pine cones) have adapted by growing skinny needles to collect light energy and stay on the tree all year. Succulent plants like the prickly pear cactus have adapted to its hot environment by having a thick wax like surface on it to stop all the water from evaporating from it. Also, cactuses have adapted to animals by growing sharp spine like needles to keep animals away. Still other plants like the Rocky Mountain Columbine grow quickly in the short mountain summer, produce lots flowers and seeds, die off, and wait for the next summer to grow.
Adaptations	Animals	Animals have adapted as well to the different elevations, climates, and plants. Some animals like the Bighorn Sheep grow thick warm fur to keep them warm in the cold high mountains. Other animals like ferrets and weasels have developed long skinny bodies to live in rocks and tunnels. Animals like the sage grouse have adapted to eat different type plants that live in their life zone. There are many other adaptations besides these. Some animals have adapted to many different life zones. For example, the red fox can live in the warm Great Plains to all the way up in the chilly subalpine life zone. So if you see an animal listed in one of the life zones on this website, it might live in other life zones for some or all of the year. Think of its adaptations!