# Yellowstone National Park

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search
First national park in the world, located in the US states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho

Yellowstone National Park
IUCN category II (national park)[1]
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
Location of Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park (the United States) Show map of Wyoming Show map of the United States Show all
Location | United States Park County, Wyoming Teton County, Wyoming Gallatin County, Montana Park County, Montana Fremont County, Idaho
Nearest town | West Yellowstone, Montana
Coordinates | 44°35′47″N 110°32′50″W﻿ / ﻿44.59639°N 110.54722°W﻿ / 44.59639; -110.54722 Coordinates: 44°35′47″N 110°32′50″W﻿ / ﻿44.59639°N 110.54722°W﻿ / 44.59639; -110.54722[2]
Area | 2,219,791 acres (8,983.18 km2)[3]
Elevation | 8,104 ft (2,470 m)
Established | March 1, 1872; 148 years ago (1872-03-01)
Visitors | 4,020,288 (in 2019)[4]
Governing body | U.S. National Park Service
Website | www.nps.gov/yell/
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Type | Natural
Criteria | vii, viii, ix, x
Designated | 1978 (2nd session)
Reference no. | 28[5]
Region | The Americas
Endangered | 1995–2003

Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872.[6][7] Yellowstone was the first national park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world.[8] The park is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful geyser, one of its most popular.[9] While it represents many types of biomes, the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests ecoregion.

Although Native Americans have lived in the Yellowstone region for at least 11,000 years,[10] aside from visits by mountain men during the early-to-mid-19th century, organized exploration did not begin until the late 1860s. Management and control of the park originally fell under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of the Interior, the first Secretary of the Interior to supervise the park being Columbus Delano. However, the U.S. Army was eventually commissioned to oversee management of Yellowstone for a 30-year period between 1886 and 1916.[11] In 1917, administration of the park was transferred to the National Park Service, which had been created the previous year. Hundreds of structures have been built and are protected for their architectural and historical significance, and researchers have examined more than a thousand archaeological sites.

Yellowstone National Park spans an area of 3,468.4 sq mi (8,983 km2),[3] comprising lakes, canyons, rivers, and mountain ranges.[9] Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America and is centered over the Yellowstone Caldera, the largest supervolcano on the continent. The caldera is considered a dormant volcano. It has erupted with tremendous force several times in the last two million years.[12] Half of the world's geysers[13][14] and hydrothermal features[15] are in Yellowstone, fueled by this ongoing volcanism. Lava flows and rocks from volcanic eruptions cover most of the land area of Yellowstone. The park is the centerpiece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest remaining nearly-intact ecosystem in the Earth's northern temperate zone.[16] In 1978, Yellowstone was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hundreds of species of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians have been documented, including several that are either endangered or threatened.[9] The vast forests and grasslands also include unique species of plants. Yellowstone Park is the largest and most famous megafauna location in the contiguous United States. Grizzly bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk live in this park. The Yellowstone Park bison herd is the oldest and largest public bison herd in the United States. Forest fires occur in the park each year; in the large forest fires of 1988, nearly one third of the park was burnt. Yellowstone has numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking, camping, boating, fishing, and sightseeing. Paved roads provide close access to the major geothermal areas as well as some of the lakes and waterfalls. During the winter, visitors often access the park by way of guided tours that use either snow coaches or snowmobiles.[17]

## History[edit]

Detailed pictorial map from 1904

The park contains the headwaters of the Yellowstone River, from which it takes its historical name. Near the end of the 18th century, French trappers named the river Roche Jaune, which is probably a translation of the Hidatsa name Mi tsi a-da-zi ("Yellow Rock River").[18] Later, American trappers rendered the French name in English as "Yellow Stone". Although it is commonly believed that the river was named for the yellow rocks seen in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, the Native American name source is unclear.[19]

The human history of the park began at least 11,000 years ago when Indians began to hunt and fish in the region. During the construction of the post office in Gardiner, Montana, in the 1950s, an obsidian point of Clovis origin was found that dated from approximately 11,000 years ago.[20] These Paleo-Indians, of the Clovis culture, used the significant amounts of obsidian found in the park to make cutting tools and weapons. Arrowheads made of Yellowstone obsidian have been found as far away as the Mississippi Valley, indicating that a regular obsidian trade existed between local tribes and tribes farther east.[21] By the time white explorers first entered the region during the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1805, they encountered the Nez Perce, Crow, and Shoshone tribes. While passing through present day Montana, the expedition members heard of the Yellowstone region to the south, but they did not investigate it.[21]

In 1806, John Colter, a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, left to join a group of fur trappers. After splitting up with the other trappers in 1807, Colter passed through a portion of what later became the park, during the winter of 1807–1808. He observed at least one geothermal area in the northeastern section of the park, near Tower Fall.[22] After surviving wounds he suffered in a battle with members of the Crow and Blackfoot tribes in 1809, Colter described a place of "fire and brimstone" that most people dismissed as delirium; the supposedly mystical place was nicknamed "Colter's Hell". Over the next 40 years, numerous reports from mountain men and trappers told of boiling mud, steaming rivers, and petrified trees, yet most of these reports were believed at the time to be myth.[23]

After an 1856 exploration, mountain man Jim Bridger (also believed to be the first or second European American to have seen the Great Salt Lake) reported observing boiling springs, spouting water, and a mountain of glass and yellow rock. These reports were largely ignored because Bridger was a known "spinner of yarns". In 1859, a U.S. Army Surveyor named Captain William F. Raynolds embarked on a two-year survey of the northern Rockies. After wintering in Wyoming, in May 1860, Raynolds and his party—which included naturalist Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden and guide Jim Bridger—attempted to cross the Continental Divide over Two Ocean Plateau from the Wind River drainage in northwest Wyoming. Heavy spring snows prevented their passage, but had they been able to traverse the divide, the party would have been the first organized survey to enter the Yellowstone region.[24] The American Civil War hampered further organized explorations until the late 1860s.[25]

Ferdinand V. Hayden (1829–1887), American geologist who convinced Congress to make Yellowstone a national park in 1872

The first detailed expedition to the Yellowstone area was the Cook–Folsom–Peterson Expedition of 1869, which consisted of three privately funded explorers. The Folsom party followed the Yellowstone River to Yellowstone Lake.[26] The members of the Folsom party kept a journal- based on the information it reported, a party of Montana residents organized the Washburn–Langford–Doane Expedition in 1870. It was headed by the surveyor-general of Montana Henry Washburn, and included Nathaniel P. Langford (who later became known as "National Park" Langford) and a U.S. Army detachment commanded by Lt. Gustavus Doane. The expedition spent about a month exploring the region, collecting specimens and naming sites of interest.

A Montana writer and lawyer named Cornelius Hedges, who had been a member of the Washburn expedition, proposed that the region should be set aside and protected as a national park; he wrote detailed articles about his observations for the Helena Herald newspaper between 1870 and 1871. Hedges essentially restated comments made in October 1865 by acting Montana Territorial Governor Thomas Francis Meagher, who had previously commented that the region should be protected.[27] Others made similar suggestions. In an 1871 letter from Jay Cooke to Ferdinand V.Hayden, Cooke wrote that his friend, Congressman William D. Kelley had also suggested "Congress pass a bill reserving the Great Geyser Basin as a public park forever".[28]

### Park creation[edit]

Ferdinand V. Hayden's map of Yellowstone National Park, 1871

In 1871, eleven years after his failed first effort, Ferdinand V. Hayden was finally able to explore the region. With government sponsorship, he returned to the region with a second, larger expedition, the Hayden Geological Survey of 1871. He compiled a comprehensive report, including large-format photographs by William Henry Jackson and paintings by Thomas Moran. The report helped to convince the U.S. Congress to withdraw this region from public auction. On March 1, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed The Act of Dedication[7] law that created Yellowstone National Park.[29]

Hayden, while not the only person to have thought of creating a park in the region, was its first and most enthusiastic advocate.[30] He believed in "setting aside the area as a pleasure ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people" and warned that there were those who would come and "make merchandise of these beautiful specimens".[30] Worrying the area could face the same fate as Niagara Falls, he concluded the site should "be as free as the air or Water."[30] In his report to the Committee on Public Lands, he concluded that if the bill failed to become law, "the vandals who are now waiting to enter into this wonder-land, will in a single season despoil, beyond recovery, these remarkable curiosities, which have required all the cunning skill of nature thousands of years to prepare".[31][32]

Hayden and his 1871 party recognized Yellowstone as a priceless treasure that would become rarer with time. He wished for others to see and experience it as well. In 1873, Congress authorized and funded a survey to find a wagon route to the park from the south which was completed by the Jones Expedition of 1873.[33] Eventually the railroads and, some time after that, the automobile would make that possible. The park was not set aside strictly for ecological purposes; however, the designation "pleasure ground" was not an invitation to create an amusement park. Hayden imagined something akin to the scenic resorts and baths in England, Germany, and Switzerland.[30]

> THE ACT OF DEDICATION[32]

> AN ACT to set apart a certain tract of land lying near the headwaters of the Yellowstone River as a public park. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the tract of land in the Territories of Montana and Wyoming ... is hereby reserved and withdrawn from settlement, occupancy, or sale under the laws of the United States, and dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people; and all persons who shall locate, or settle upon, or occupy the same or any part thereof, except as hereinafter provided, shall be considered trespassers and removed there from ...

> Approved March 1, 1872.

> Signed by:

> - ULYSSES S. GRANT, President of the United States.
> - SCHUYLER COLFAX, Vice-President of the United States and President of the Senate.
> - JAMES G. BLAINE, Speaker of the House.

Portrait of Nathaniel P. Langford (1870), the first superintendent of the park[34]

There was considerable local opposition to the Yellowstone National Park during its early years. Some of the locals feared that the regional economy would be unable to thrive if there remained strict federal prohibitions against resource development or settlement within park boundaries and local entrepreneurs advocated reducing the size of the park so that mining, hunting, and logging activities could be developed.[35] To this end, numerous bills were introduced into Congress by Montana representatives who sought to remove the federal land-use restrictions.[36]

After the park's official formation, Nathaniel Langford was appointed as the park's first superintendent in 1872 by Secretary of Interior Columbus Delano, the first overseer and controller of the park.[37] Langford served for five years but was denied a salary, funding, and staff. Langford lacked the means to improve the land or properly protect the park, and without formal policy or regulations, he had few legal methods to enforce such protection. This left Yellowstone vulnerable to poachers, vandals, and others seeking to raid its resources. He addressed the practical problems park administrators faced in the 1872 Report to the Secretary of the Interior[38] and correctly predicted that Yellowstone would become a major international attraction deserving the continuing stewardship of the government. In 1874, both Langford and Delano advocated the creation of a federal agency to protect the vast park, but Congress refused. In 1875, Colonel William Ludlow, who had previously explored areas of Montana under the command of George Armstrong Custer, was assigned to organize and lead an expedition to Montana and the newly established Yellowstone Park. Observations about the lawlessness and exploitation of park resources were included in Ludlow's Report of a Reconnaissance to the Yellowstone National Park. The report included letters and attachments by other expedition members, including naturalist and mineralogist George Bird Grinnell.

Great Falls of the Yellowstone, U.S. Geological and Geographic Survey of the Territories (1874–1879), photographer William Henry Jackson

Grinnell documented the poaching of buffalo, deer, elk, and antelope for hides. "It is estimated that during the winter of 1874–1875, not less than 3,000 buffalo and mule deer suffer even more severely than the elk, and the antelope nearly as much."[39]

As a result, Langford was forced to step down in 1877.[40][41] Having traveled through Yellowstone and witnessed land management problems first hand, Philetus Norris volunteered for the position following Langford's exit. Congress finally saw fit to implement a salary for the position, as well as to provide a minimal funding to operate the park. Norris used these funds to expand access to the park, building numerous crude roads and facilities.[41]

In 1880, Harry Yount was appointed as a gamekeeper to control poaching and vandalism in the park. Yount had previously spent decades exploring the mountain country of present-day Wyoming, including the Grand Tetons, after joining F V. Hayden's Geological Survey in 1873.[42] Yount is the first national park ranger,[43] and Yount's Peak, at the head of the Yellowstone River, was named in his honor.[44] However, these measures still proved to be insufficient in protecting the park, as neither Norris, nor the three superintendents who followed, were given sufficient manpower or resources.

Fort Yellowstone, formerly a U.S. Army post, now serves as park headquarters.

The Northern Pacific Railroad built a train station in Livingston, Montana, connecting to the northern entrance in the early 1880s, which helped to increase visitation from 300 in 1872 to 5,000 in 1883.[45] A line was also extended from Livingston to Gardiner station, where passengers switched to stagecoach.[46] Visitors in these early years faced poor roads and limited services, and most access into the park was on horse or via stagecoach. By 1908 visitation increased enough to attract a Union Pacific Railroad connection to West Yellowstone, though rail visitation fell off considerably by World War II and ceased around the 1960s. Much of the railroad line was converted to nature trails, among them the Yellowstone Branch Line Trail.

Thomas Moran painted Tower Creek while on the Hayden Geological Survey of 1871.

During the 1870s and 1880s, Native American tribes were effectively excluded from the national park. Under a half-dozen tribes had made seasonal use of the Yellowstone area- the only year-round residents were small bands of Eastern Shoshone known as "Sheepeaters". They left the area under the assurances of a treaty negotiated in 1868, under which the Sheepeaters ceded their lands but retained the right to hunt in Yellowstone. The United States never ratified the treaty, and refused to recognize the claims of the Sheepeaters or any other tribe that had used Yellowstone.[47]

The Nez Perce band associated with Chief Joseph, numbering about 750 people, passed through Yellowstone National Park in thirteen days during late August 1877. They were being pursued by the U.S. Army and entered the national park about two weeks after the Battle of the Big Hole. Some of the Nez Perce were friendly to the tourists and other people they encountered in the park; some were not. Nine park visitors were briefly taken captive. Despite Joseph and other chiefs ordering that no one should be harmed, at least two people were killed and several wounded.[48][49] One of the areas where encounters occurred was in Lower Geyser Basin and east along a branch of the Firehole River to Mary Mountain and beyond.[48] That stream is still known as Nez Perce Creek.[50] A group of Bannocks entered the park in 1878, alarming park Superintendent Philetus Norris. In the aftermath of the Sheepeater Indian War of 1879, Norris built a fort to prevent Native Americans from entering the national park.[47][49]

Travertine Terrace, Mammoth Hot Springs

Ongoing poaching and destruction of natural resources continued unabated until the U.S. Army arrived at Mammoth Hot Springs in 1886 and built Camp Sheridan. Over the next 22 years, as the army constructed permanent structures, Camp Sheridan was renamed Fort Yellowstone.[51] On May 7, 1894, the Boone and Crockett Club, acting through the personality of George G. Vest, Arnold Hague, William Hallett Phillips, W. A. Wadsworth, Archibald Rogers, Theodore Roosevelt, and George Bird Grinnell were successful in carrying through the Park Protection Act, which saved the park.[52] The Lacey Act of 1900 provided legal support for the officials prosecuting poachers. With the funding and manpower necessary to keep a diligent watch, the army developed their own policies and regulations that permitted public access while protecting park wildlife and natural resources. When the National Park Service was created in 1916, many of the management principles developed by the army were adopted by the new agency.[51] The army turned control over to the National Park Service on October 31, 1918.[53]

In 1898, the naturalist John Muir described the park as follows: "However orderly your excursions or aimless, again and again amid the calmest, stillest scenery you will be brought to a standstill hushed and awe-stricken before phenomena wholly new to you. Boiling springs and huge deep pools of purest green and azure water, thousands of them, are plashing and heaving in these high, cool mountains as if a fierce furnace fire were burning beneath each one of them; and a hundred geysers, white torrents of boiling water and steam, like inverted waterfalls, are ever and anon rushing up out of the hot, black underworld."[54]

### Later history[edit]

Superintendent Horace M. Albright and black bears (1922). Tourists often fed black bears in the park's early years, with 527 injuries reported from 1931 to 1939.[55]

By 1915, 1,000 automobiles per year were entering the park, resulting in conflicts with horses and horse-drawn transportation. Horse travel on roads was eventually prohibited.[56]

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), a New Deal relief agency for young men, played a major role between 1933 and 1942 in developing Yellowstone facilities. CCC projects included reforestation, campground development of many of the park's trails and campgrounds, trail construction, fire hazard reduction, and fire-fighting work. The CCC built the majority of the early visitor centers, campgrounds and the current system of park roads.[57]

During World War II, tourist travel fell sharply, staffing was cut, and many facilities fell into disrepair.[58] By the 1950s, visitation increased tremendously in Yellowstone and other national parks. To accommodate the increased visitation, park officials implemented Mission 66, an effort to modernize and expand park service facilities. Planned to be completed by 1966, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the National Park Service, Mission 66 construction diverged from the traditional log cabin style with design features of a modern style.[59] During the late 1980s, most construction styles in Yellowstone reverted to the more traditional designs. After the enormous forest fires of 1988 damaged much of Grant Village, structures there were rebuilt in the traditional style. The visitor center at Canyon Village, which opened in 2006, incorporates a more traditional design as well.[60]

The Roosevelt Arch in Gardiner, Montana, at the north entrance

The 1959 Hebgen Lake earthquake just west of Yellowstone at Hebgen Lake damaged roads and some structures in the park. In the northwest section of the park, new geysers were found, and many existing hot springs became turbid.[61] It was the most powerful earthquake to hit the region in recorded history.

In 1963, after several years of public controversy regarding the forced reduction of the elk population in Yellowstone, United States Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall appointed an advisory board to collect scientific data to inform future wildlife management of the national parks. In a paper known as the Leopold Report, the committee observed that culling programs at other national parks had been ineffective, and recommended management of Yellowstone's elk population.[62]

The wildfires during the summer of 1988 were the largest in the history of the park. Approximately 793,880 acres (3,210 km2; 1,240 sq mi) or 36% of the parkland was impacted by the fires, leading to a systematic re-evaluation of fire management policies. The fire season of 1988 was considered normal until a combination of drought and heat by mid-July contributed to an extreme fire danger. On "Black Saturday", August 20, 1988, strong winds expanded the fires rapidly, and more than 150,000 acres (610 km2; 230 sq mi) burned.[63]

Pictorial map by Heinrich C. Berann (1991); scale exaggerated

The expansive cultural history of the park has been documented by the 1,000 archeological sites that have been discovered. The park has 1,106 historic structures and features, and of these Obsidian Cliff and five buildings have been designated National Historic Landmarks.[9] Yellowstone was designated an International Biosphere Reserve on October 26, 1976, and a UN World Heritage Site on September 8, 1978. The park was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger from 1995 to 2003 due to the effects of tourism, infection of wildlife, and issues with invasive species.[64] In 2010, Yellowstone National Park was honored with its own quarter under the America the Beautiful Quarters Program.[65]

Justin Ferrell explores three moral sensibilities that motivated activists in dealing with Yellowstone. First came the utilitarian vision of maximum exploitation of natural resources, characteristic of developers in the late 19th century. Second was the spiritual vision of nature inspired by the Romanticism and the transcendentalists in the mid-19th century. The twentieth century saw the biocentric moral vision that focuses on the health of the ecosystem as theorized by Aldo Leopold, which led to the expansion of federally protected areas and to the surrounding ecosystems.[66]

### Heritage and Research Center[edit]

The Heritage and Research Center is located at Gardiner, Montana, near the north entrance to the park.[67] The center is home to the Yellowstone National Park's museum collection, archives, research library, historian, archeology lab, and herbarium. The Yellowstone National Park Archives maintain collections of historical records of Yellowstone and the National Park Service. The collection includes the administrative records of Yellowstone, as well as resource management records, records from major projects, and donated manuscripts and personal papers. The archives are affiliated with the National Archives and Records Administration.[68][69]

### Closure for COVID-19[edit]

Yellowstone National Park was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and closed to the public on March 24, 2020.[70] The south and east entrances to the park re-opened on May 18, 2020.[71]

## Geography[edit]

Official park map c. 2006 (click on map to enlarge)
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
Interactive map of Yellowstone National Park

Approximately 96 percent of the land area of Yellowstone National Park is located within the state of Wyoming.[9] Another three percent is within Montana, with the remaining one percent in Idaho. The park is 63 miles (101 km) north to south, and 54 miles (87 km) west to east by air. Yellowstone is 2,219,789 acres (8,983 km2; 3,468 sq mi)[3] in area, larger than either of the states of Rhode Island or Delaware. Rivers and lakes cover five percent of the land area, with the largest water body being Yellowstone Lake at 87,040 acres (352 km2; 136 sq mi). Yellowstone Lake is up to 400 feet (120 m) deep and has 110 miles (180 km) of shoreline. At an elevation of 7,733 feet (2,357 m) above sea level, Yellowstone Lake is the largest high elevation lake in North America. Forests comprise 80 percent of the land area of the park; most of the rest is grassland.[9]

The Continental Divide of North America runs diagonally through the southwestern part of the park. The divide is a topographic feature that separates Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean water drainages. About one third of the park lies on the west side of the divide. The origins of the Yellowstone and Snake Rivers are near each other but on opposite sides of the divide. As a result, the waters of the Snake River flow to the Pacific Ocean, while those of the Yellowstone find their way to the Gulf of Mexico.

A 3D computer-generated aerial image

The park sits on the Yellowstone Plateau, at an average elevation of 8,000 feet (2,400 m) above sea level. The plateau is bounded on nearly all sides by mountain ranges of the Middle Rocky Mountains, which range from 9,000 to 11,000 feet (2,700 to 3,400 m) in elevation. The highest point in the park is atop Eagle Peak (11,358 feet or 3,462 metres) and the lowest is along Reese Creek (5,282 feet or 1,610 metres).[9] Nearby mountain ranges include the Gallatin Range to the northwest, the Beartooth Mountains in the north, the Absaroka Range to the east, the Teton Range to the south, and the Madison Range to the west. The most prominent summit on the Yellowstone Plateau is Mount Washburn at 10,243 feet (3,122 m).

Yellowstone National Park has one of the world's largest petrified forests, trees which were long ago buried by ash and soil and transformed from wood to mineral materials. This ash and other volcanic debris are believed to have come from the park area itself as the central part of Yellowstone is the massive caldera of a supervolcano. The park contains 290 waterfalls of at least 15 feet (4.6 m), the highest being the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River at 308 feet (94 m).[9]

Three deep canyons are located in the park, cut through the volcanic tuff of the Yellowstone Plateau by rivers over the last 640,000 years. The Lewis River flows through Lewis Canyon in the south, and the Yellowstone River has carved two colorful canyons, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone in its journey north.

## Geology[edit]

### Volcanism[edit]

Columnar basalt near Tower Fall; large floods of basalt and other lava types preceded mega-eruptions of superheated ash and pumice.

Yellowstone is at the northeastern end of the Snake River Plain, a great U-shaped arc through the mountains that extends from Boise, Idaho some 400 miles (640 km) to the west.

The volcanism of Yellowstone is believed to be linked to the somewhat older volcanism of Snake River plain. Yellowstone is thus the active part of a hotspot that has moved northeast over time.[72] The origin of this hotspot volcanism is disputed.[73] One theory holds that a mantle plume has caused the Yellowstone hotspot to migrate northeast, while another theory explains migrating hotspot volcanism as the result of the fragmentation and dynamics of the subducted Farallon Plate in Earth's interior.[73][74]

The Yellowstone Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America, and in the world, it is only rivalled by the Lake Toba Caldera on Sumatra. It has been termed a "supervolcano" because the caldera was formed by exceptionally large explosive eruptions. The magma chamber that lies under Yellowstone is estimated to be a single connected chamber, about 37 miles (60 km) long, 18 miles (29 km) wide, and 3 to 7 miles (5 to 12 km) deep.[75] The current caldera was created by a cataclysmic eruption that occurred 640,000 years ago, which released more than 240 cubic miles (1,000 km³) of ash, rock and pyroclastic materials.[76] This eruption was more than 1,000 times larger than the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.[77] It produced a caldera nearly 5/8 of a mile (1 km) deep and 45 by 28 miles (72 by 45 km) in area and deposited the Lava Creek Tuff, a welded tuff geologic formation. The most violent known eruption, which occurred 2.1 million years ago, ejected 588 cubic miles (2,450 km³) of volcanic material and created the rock formation known as the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff and created the Island Park Caldera.[78] A smaller eruption ejected 67 cubic miles (280 km³) of material 1.3 million years ago, forming the Henry's Fork Caldera and depositing the Mesa Falls Tuff.[77]

Each of the three climactic eruptions released vast amounts of ash that blanketed much of central North America, falling many hundreds of miles away. The amount of ash and gases released into the atmosphere probably caused significant impacts to world weather patterns and led to the extinction of some species, primarily in North America.[79]

Boardwalks allow visitors to safely approach the thermal features, such as Grand Prismatic Spring.

A subsequent caldera-forming eruption occurred about 160,000 years ago. It formed the relatively small caldera that contains the West Thumb of Yellowstone Lake. Since the last supereruption, a series of smaller eruptive cycles between 640,000 and 70,000 years ago, has nearly filled in the Yellowstone Caldera with 80 different eruptions of rhyolitic lavas such as those that can be seen at Obsidian Cliffs and basaltic lavas which can be viewed at Sheepeater Cliff. Lava strata are most easily seen at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, where the Yellowstone River continues to carve into the ancient lava flows. The canyon is a classic V-shaped valley, indicative of river-type erosion rather than erosion caused by glaciation.[78]

Each eruption is part of an eruptive cycle that climaxes with the partial collapse of the roof of the volcano's partially emptied magma chamber. This creates a collapsed depression, called a caldera, and releases vast amounts of volcanic material, usually through fissures that ring the caldera. The time between the last three cataclysmic eruptions in the Yellowstone area has ranged from 600,000 to 800,000 years, but the small number of such climactic eruptions cannot be used to make an accurate prediction for future volcanic events.[80]

### Geysers and the hydrothermal system[edit]

Old Faithful erupts approximately every 90 minutes.

The most famous geyser in the park, and perhaps the world, is Old Faithful geyser, located in Upper Geyser Basin. Castle Geyser, Lion Geyser and Beehive Geyser are in the same basin. The park contains the largest active geyser in the world—Steamboat Geyser in the Norris Geyser Basin. A study that was completed in 2011 found that at least 1283 geysers have erupted in Yellowstone. Of these, an average of 465 are active in a given year.[81][82] Yellowstone contains at least 10,000 thermal features altogether.[83] Half of the world's geysers and hydrothermal features are concentrated in Yellowstone.[84][15]

Steamboat Geyser is the world's largest active geyser.

In May 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey, Yellowstone National Park, and the University of Utah created the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), a partnership for long-term monitoring of the geological processes of the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field, for disseminating information concerning the potential hazards of this geologically active region.[85]

In 2003, changes at the Norris Geyser Basin resulted in the temporary closure of some trails in the basin. New fumaroles were observed, and several geysers showed enhanced activity and increasing water temperatures. Several geysers became so hot that they were transformed into purely steaming features; the water had become superheated and they could no longer erupt normally.[86] This coincided with the release of reports of a multiple year United States Geological Survey research project which mapped the bottom of Yellowstone Lake and identified a structural dome that had uplifted at some time in the past. Research indicated that these uplifts posed no immediate threat of a volcanic eruption, since they may have developed long ago, and there had been no temperature increase found near the uplifts.[87] On March 10, 2004, a biologist discovered 5 dead bison which apparently had inhaled toxic geothermal gases trapped in the Norris Geyser Basin by a seasonal atmospheric inversion. This was closely followed by an upsurge of earthquake activity in April 2004.[88] In 2006, it was reported that the Mallard Lake Dome and the Sour Creek Dome—areas that have long been known to show significant changes in their ground movement—had risen at a rate of 1.5 to 2.4 inches (3.8 to 6.1 cm) per year from mid–2004 through 2006. As of late 2007, the uplift has continued at a reduced rate.[89][90] These events inspired a great deal of media attention and speculation about the geologic future of the region. Experts responded to the conjecture by informing the public that there was no increased risk of a volcanic eruption in the near future.[91] However, these changes demonstrate the dynamic nature of the Yellowstone hydrothermal system.

### Earthquakes[edit]

Infrastructure damage at Hebgen Lake due to the 7.2 magnitude earthquake of 1959

Yellowstone experiences thousands of small earthquakes every year, virtually all of which are undetectable to people. There have been six earthquakes with at least magnitude 6 or greater in historical times, including the 7.2‑magnitude Hebgen Lake earthquake which occurred just outside the northwest boundary of the park in 1959.[92] This quake triggered a huge landslide, which caused a partial dam collapse on Hebgen Lake; immediately downstream, the sediment from the landslide dammed the river and created a new lake, known as Earthquake Lake. Twenty-eight people were killed, and property damage was extensive in the immediate region. The earthquake caused some geysers in the northwestern section of the park to erupt, large cracks in the ground formed and emitted steam, and some hot springs that normally have clear water turned muddy.[61] A 6.1‑magnitude earthquake struck inside the park on June 30, 1975, but damage was minimal.

For three months in 1985, 3,000 minor earthquakes were detected in the northwestern section of the park, during what has been referred to as an earthquake swarm, and has been attributed to minor subsidence of the Yellowstone caldera.[77] Beginning on April 30, 2007, 16 small earthquakes with magnitudes up to 2.7 occurred in the Yellowstone Caldera for several days. These swarms of earthquakes are common, and there have been 70 such swarms between 1983 and 2008.[93] In December 2008, over 250 earthquakes were measured over a four-day span under Yellowstone Lake, the largest measuring a magnitude of 3.9.[94] In January 2010, more than 250 earthquakes were detected over a two-day period.[95] Seismic activity in Yellowstone National Park continues and is reported hourly by the Earthquake Hazards Program of the U.S. Geological Survey.[96]

On March 30, 2014, a magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck almost the very middle of Yellowstone near the Norris Basin at 6:34 am; reports indicated no damage. This was the largest earthquake to hit the park since February 22, 1980.[97]

## Biology and ecology[edit]

Meadow in Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park is the centerpiece of the 20 million acres (80,940 km2; 31,250 sq mi) Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, a region that includes Grand Teton National Park, adjacent National Forests and expansive wilderness areas in those forests. The ecosystem is the largest remaining continuous stretch of mostly undeveloped pristine land in the contiguous United States, considered the world's largest intact ecosystem in the northern temperate zone.[16] With the successful wolf reintroduction program, which began in the 1990s, virtually all the original faunal species known to inhabit the region when white explorers first entered the area can still be found there.

### Flora[edit]

Over 1,700 species of trees and other vascular plants are native to the park. Another 170 species are considered to be exotic species and are non-native. Of the eight conifer tree species documented, Lodgepole Pine forests cover 80% of the total forested areas.[9] Other conifers, such as Subalpine Fir, Engelmann Spruce, Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir and Whitebark Pine, are found in scattered groves throughout the park. As of 2007, the whitebark pine is threatened by a fungus known as white pine blister rust; however, this is mostly confined to forests well to the north and west. In Yellowstone, about seven percent of the whitebark pine species have been impacted with the fungus, compared to nearly complete infestations in northwestern Montana.[98] Quaking Aspen and willows are the most common species of deciduous trees. The aspen forests have declined significantly since the early 20th century, but scientists at Oregon State University attribute recent recovery of the aspen to the reintroduction of wolves which has changed the grazing habits of local elk.[99]

Yellowstone sand verbena are endemic to Yellowstone's lakeshores.

There are dozens of species of flowering plants that have been identified, most of which bloom between the months of May and September.[100] The Yellowstone sand verbena is a rare flowering plant found only in Yellowstone. It is closely related to species usually found in much warmer climates, making the sand verbena an enigma. The estimated 8,000 examples of this rare flowering plant all make their home in the sandy soils on the shores of Yellowstone Lake, well above the waterline.[101]

In Yellowstone's hot waters, bacteria form mats of bizarre shapes consisting of trillions of individuals. These bacteria are some of the most primitive life forms on earth. Flies and other arthropods live on the mats, even in the middle of the bitterly cold winters. Initially, scientists thought that microbes there gained sustenance only from sulfur. In 2005 researchers from the University of Colorado at Boulder discovered that the sustenance for at least some of the diverse hyperthermophilic species is molecular hydrogen.[102]

Thermus aquaticus is a bacterium found in the Yellowstone hot springs that produces an important enzyme (Taq polymerase) that is easily replicated in the lab and is useful in replicating DNA as part of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) process. The retrieval of these bacteria can be achieved with no impact to the ecosystem. Other bacteria in the Yellowstone hot springs may also prove useful to scientists who are searching for cures for various diseases.[103] In 2016, researchers from Uppsala University reported the discovery of a class of thermophiles, Hadesarchaea, in Yellowstone's Culex Basin. These organisms are capable of converting carbon monoxide and water to carbon dioxide and hydrogen.[104][105]

Non-native plants sometimes threaten native species by using up nutrient resources. Though exotic species are most commonly found in areas with the greatest human visitation, such as near roads and at major tourist areas, they have also spread into the backcountry. Generally, most exotic species are controlled by pulling the plants out of the soil or by spraying, both of which are time-consuming and expensive.[106]

### Fauna[edit]

Yellowstone is widely considered to be the finest megafauna wildlife habitat in the lower 48 states. There are almost 60 species of mammals in the park, including the Rocky Mountain wolf, coyote, the Canadian lynx, cougars, and black and grizzly bears.[9] Other large mammals include the bison (often referred to as buffalo), elk, moose, mule deer, white-tailed deer, mountain goat, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep.

American bison

The Yellowstone Park bison herd is the largest public herd of American bison in the United States. The relatively large bison populations are a concern for ranchers, who fear that the species can transmit bovine diseases to their domesticated cousins. In fact, about half of Yellowstone's bison have been exposed to brucellosis, a bacterial disease that came to North America with European cattle that may cause cattle to miscarry. The disease has little effect on park bison, and no reported cases of transmission from wild bison to domestic livestock have been filed. However, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has stated that bison are the "likely source" of the spread of the disease in cattle in Wyoming and North Dakota. Elk also carry the disease, and are believed to have transmitted the infection to horses and cattle.[107]

Bison once numbered between 30 and 60 million individuals throughout North America, and Yellowstone remains one of their last strongholds. Their populations had increased from less than 50 in the park in 1902 to 4,000 by 2003. The Yellowstone Park bison herd reached a peak in 2005 with 4,900 animals. Despite a summer estimated population of 4,700 in 2007, the number dropped to 3,000 in 2008 after a harsh winter and controversial brucellosis management strategies which sent hundreds to slaughter.[108]

The Yellowstone Park bison herd is believed to be one of only four free roaming and genetically pure herds on public lands in North America. The other three herds are the Henry Mountains bison herd of Utah, at Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota and in Elk Island National Park in Alberta.[109]

Elk mother nursing her calf

To combat the perceived threat of brucellosis transmission to cattle, national park personnel regularly corral bison herds back into the park when they venture outside of the area's borders. During the winter of 1996–97, the bison herd was so large that 1,079 bison that had exited the park were either shot or sent to slaughter.[107] Animal rights activists argue that this is a cruel practice, and that the possibility for disease transmission is not as great as some ranchers maintain. Ecologists point out that the bison are merely traveling to seasonal grazing areas that lie within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem that have been converted to cattle grazing, some of which are within National Forests and are leased to private ranchers. APHIS has stated that with vaccinations and other means, brucellosis can be eliminated from the bison and elk herds throughout Yellowstone.[107]

A reintroduced wolf in Yellowstone National Park

Starting in 1914, in an effort to protect elk populations, the U.S. Congress appropriated funds to be used for the purposes of "destroying wolves, prairie dogs, and other animals injurious to agriculture and animal husbandry" on public lands. Park Service hunters carried out these orders, and by 1926 they had killed 136 wolves. Gradually, wolves were virtually eliminated from Yellowstone.[110] Further exterminations continued until the National Park Service ended the practice in 1935. With the passing of the Endangered Species Act in 1973, the wolf was one of the first mammal species listed.[110] After the wolves were extirpated from Yellowstone, the coyote then became the park's top canine predator. Since the coyote is not able to bring down large animals, this lack of an apex predator resulted in a marked increase in lame and sick megafauna.

By the 1990s, the Federal government had reversed its views on wolves. In a controversial decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (which oversees threatened and endangered species), northwestern wolves imported from Canada were reintroduced into the park. Reintroduction efforts have been successful, with populations remaining relatively stable. A survey conducted in 2005 reported that there were 13 wolf packs, totaling 118 individuals in Yellowstone and 326 in the entire ecosystem. These park figures were lower than those reported in 2004, but may be attributable to wolf migration to other nearby areas as suggested by the substantial increase in the Montana population during that interval.[111] Almost all the wolves documented were descended from the 66 wolves reintroduced in 1995–96.[111] The recovery of populations throughout the states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho has been so successful that on February 27, 2008, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed the Northern Rocky Mountain wolf population from the endangered species list.[112]

Black bear and cub near Tower Fall

Black bears are common in the park and were a park symbol due to visitor interaction with the bears starting in 1910. Feeding and close contact with bears has not been permitted since the 1960s to reduce their desire for human foods.[113] Yellowstone is one of the few places in the United States where black bears can be seen coexisting with grizzly bears.[113] Black bear observations occur most often in the park's northern ranges, and in the Bechler area which is in the park's southwestern corner.[114]

As of 2017[update], an estimated 700 grizzly bears were living in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,[115] with about 150 grizzlies living wholly or partially within Yellowstone National Park.[116] The grizzly was initially listed as a threatened species in the contiguous United States on July 28, 1975, by the Fish and Wildlife Service. The grizzly bear was taken off the endangered species list in 2007.[117] Opponents of delisting the grizzly expressed concerns that states might once again allow hunting and that better conservation measures were needed to ensure a sustainable population.[118] A federal district judge overturned the delisting ruling in 2009, reinstating the grizzly; however, the grizzly was once again removed from the list in 2017.[117] In September 2018, a US district judge ruled that the grizzly's protections must be restored in full, arguing the Fish and Wildlife Service was mistaken in removing the bear from the threatened status list.[119] Regardless of the rulings, hunting is prohibited within Yellowstone National Park. Hunters who legally hunt animals outside park boundaries may transport the carcass through the park with a permit.[120]

Elk in Hayden Valley

Population figures for elk are in excess of 30,000—the largest population of any large mammal species in Yellowstone. The northern herd has decreased enormously since the mid‑1990s; this has been attributed to wolf predation and causal effects such as elk using more forested regions to evade predation, consequently making it harder for researchers to accurately count them.[121] The northern herd migrates west into southwestern Montana in the winter. The southern herd migrates southward, and the majority of these elk winter on the National Elk Refuge, immediately southeast of Grand Teton National Park. The southern herd migration is the largest mammalian migration remaining in the U.S. outside of Alaska.

Pronghorn are commonly found on the grasslands in the park.

In 2003 the tracks of one female lynx and her cub were spotted and followed for over 2 miles (3.2 km). Fecal material and other evidence obtained were tested and confirmed to be those of a lynx. No visual confirmation was made, however. Lynx have not been seen in Yellowstone since 1998, though DNA taken from hair samples obtained in 2001 confirmed that lynx were at least transient to the park.[122] Other less commonly seen mammals include the mountain lion and wolverine. The mountain lion has an estimated population of only 25 individuals parkwide.[123] Accurate population figures for the wolverine are not known.[124] These uncommon and rare mammals provide insight into the health of protected lands such as Yellowstone and help managers make determinations as to how best to preserve habitats.

Eighteen species of fish live in Yellowstone, including the core range of the Yellowstone cutthroat trout—a fish highly sought by anglers.[9][125] The Yellowstone cutthroat trout has faced several threats since the 1980s, including the suspected illegal introduction into Yellowstone Lake of lake trout, an invasive species which consume the smaller cutthroat trout.[126] Although lake trout were established in Shoshone and Lewis lakes (on the Snake River drainage) after U.S. Government stocking operations in 1890, it was never officially introduced into the Yellowstone River drainage.[127] The cutthroat trout has also faced an ongoing drought, as well as the accidental introduction of a parasite—whirling disease—which causes a terminal nervous system disease in younger fish. Since 2001, all native sport fish species caught in Yellowstone waterways are subject to a catch and release law.[125]

Yellowstone is also home to seven species of reptiles, including the painted turtle, rubber boa, and prairie rattlesnake, bullsnake, sagebrush lizard, valley garter snake and wandering garter snake and four species of amphibians, including the boreal chorus frog, tiger salamander, western toad and columbia spotted frog.[128]

Three hundred eleven species of birds have been reported, almost half of which nest in Yellowstone.[9] In 1999, twenty-six pairs of nesting bald eagle were documented. Extremely rare sightings of whooping cranes have been recorded, however only three examples of this species are known to live in the Rocky Mountains, out of 385 known worldwide.[129] Other birds, considered to be species of special concern because of their rarity in Yellowstone, include the common loon, harlequin duck, osprey, peregrine falcon and the trumpeter swan.[130]

## Forest fires[edit]

Fire in Yellowstone National Park

As wildfire is a natural part of most ecosystems, plants that are indigenous to Yellowstone have adapted in a variety of ways. Douglas-fir have a thick bark which protects the inner section of the tree from most fires. Lodgepole Pines—the most common tree species in the park—generally have cones that are only opened by the heat of fire. Their seeds are held in place by a tough resin, and fire assists in melting the resin, allowing the seeds to disperse. Fire clears out dead and downed wood, providing fewer obstacles for lodgepole pines to flourish. Subalpine Fir, Engelmann Spruce, Whitebark Pine, and other species tend to grow in colder and moister areas, where fire is less likely to occur. Aspen trees sprout new growth from their roots, and even if a severe fire kills the tree above ground, the roots often survive unharmed because they are insulated from the heat by soil.[131] The National Park Service estimates that in natural conditions, grasslands in Yellowstone burned an average of every 20 to 25 years, while forests in the park would experience fire about every 300 years.[131]

About thirty-five natural forest fires are ignited each year by lightning, while another six to ten are started by people—in most cases by accident. Yellowstone National Park has three fire lookout towers, each staffed by trained fire fighters. The easiest one to reach is atop Mount Washburn, which has interpretive exhibits and an observation deck open to the public.[132] The park also monitors fire from the air and relies on visitor reports of smoke and/or flames.[133] Fire towers are staffed almost continuously from late June to mid-September—the primary fire season. Fires burn with the greatest intensity in the late afternoon and evening. Few fires burn more than 100 acres (40 ha), and the vast majority of fires reach only a little over an acre (0.5 ha) before they burn themselves out.[134] Fire management focuses on monitoring dead and down wood quantities, soil and tree moisture, and the weather, to determine those areas most vulnerable to fire should one ignite. Current policy is to suppress all human caused fires and to evaluate natural fires, examining the benefit or detriment they may pose on the ecosystem. If a fire is considered to be an immediate threat to people and structures, or will burn out of control, then fire suppression is performed.[135]

Wildfire in Yellowstone National Park produces a pyrocumulus cloud.

In an effort to minimize the chances of out of control fires and threats to people and structures, park employees do more than just monitor the potential for fire. Controlled burns are prescribed fires which are deliberately started to remove dead timber under conditions which allow fire fighters an opportunity to carefully control where and how much wood is consumed. Natural fires are sometimes considered prescribed fires if they are left to burn. In Yellowstone, unlike some other parks, there have been very few fires deliberately started by employees as prescribed burns. However, over the last 30 years, over 300 natural fires have been allowed to burn naturally. In addition, fire fighters remove dead and down wood and other hazards from areas where they will be a potential fire threat to lives and property, reducing the chances of fire danger in these areas.[136] Fire monitors also regulate fire through educational services to the public and have been known to temporarily ban campfires from campgrounds during periods of high fire danger. The common notion in early United States land management policies was that all forest fires were bad. Fire was seen as a purely destructive force and there was little understanding that it was an integral part of the ecosystem. Consequently, until the 1970s, when a better understanding of wildfire was developed, all fires were suppressed. This led to an increase in dead and dying forests, which would later provide the fuel load for fires that would be much harder, and in some cases, impossible to control. Fire Management Plans were implemented, detailing that natural fires should be allowed to burn if they posed no immediate threat to lives and property.

A crown fire approaches the Old Faithful complex on September 7, 1988.

1988 started with a wet spring season, although by summer, drought began moving in throughout the northern Rockies, creating the driest year on record to that point. Grasses and plants which grew well in the early summer from the abundant spring moisture produced plenty of grass, which soon turned to dry tinder. The National Park Service began firefighting efforts to keep the fires under control, but the extreme drought made suppression difficult. Between July 15 and 21, 1988, fires quickly spread from 8,500 acres (3,400 ha; 13.3 sq mi) throughout the entire Yellowstone region, which included areas outside the park, to 99,000 acres (40,000 ha; 155 sq mi) on the park land alone. By the end of the month, the fires were out of control. Large fires burned together, and on August 20, 1988, the single worst day of the fires, more than 150,000 acres (61,000 ha; 230 sq mi) were consumed. Seven large fires were responsible for 95% of the 793,000 acres (321,000 ha; 1,239 sq mi) that were burned over the next couple of months. A total of 25,000 firefighters and U.S. military forces participated in the suppression efforts, at a cost of 120 million dollars. By the time winter brought snow that helped extinguish the last flames, the fires had destroyed 67 structures and caused several million dollars in damage.[63] Though no civilian lives were lost, two personnel associated with the firefighting efforts were killed.

Contrary to media reports and speculation at the time, the fires killed very few park animals—surveys indicated that only about 345 elk (of an estimated 40,000–50,000), 36 deer, 12 moose, 6 black bears, and 9 bison had perished. Changes in fire management policies were implemented by land management agencies throughout the United States, based on knowledge gained from the 1988 fires and the evaluation of scientists and experts from various fields. By 1992, Yellowstone had adopted a new fire management plan which observed stricter guidelines for the management of natural fires.[63]

## Climate[edit]

Winter scene in Yellowstone
Geyser at Yellowstone Lake

Yellowstone climate is greatly influenced by altitude, with lower elevations generally found to be warmer year-round. The record high temperature was 99 °F (37 °C) in 2002, while the coldest temperature recorded is −66 °F (−54 °C) in 1933.[9] During the summer months of June to early September, daytime highs are normally in the 70 to 80 °F (21 to 27 °C) range, while night time lows can go to below freezing (0 °C) especially at higher altitudes. Summer afternoons are frequently accompanied by thunderstorms. Spring and fall temperatures range between 30 and 60 °F (−1 and 16 °C) with nights in the teens to single digits (−5 to −20 °C). Winter in Yellowstone is accompanied by high temperatures usually between zero and 20 °F (−20 to −5 °C) and nighttime temperatures below 0 °F (−18 °C) for most of the winter.[137]

Precipitation in Yellowstone is highly variable and ranges from 15 inches (380 mm) annually near Mammoth Hot Springs, to 80 inches (2,000 mm) in the southwestern sections of the park. The precipitation of Yellowstone is greatly influenced by the moisture channel formed by the Snake River Plain to the west that was, in turn, formed by Yellowstone itself. Snow is possible in any month of the year, but most common between November and April, with averages of 150 inches (3,800 mm) annually around Yellowstone Lake, to twice that amount at higher elevations.[137]

Tornadoes in Yellowstone are rare; however, on July 21, 1987, the most powerful tornado recorded in Wyoming touched down in the Teton Wilderness of Bridger-Teton National Forest and hit Yellowstone National Park. Called the Teton–Yellowstone tornado, it was classified as an F4, with wind speeds estimated at between 207 and 260 miles per hour (333 and 418 km/h). The tornado left a path of destruction 1 to 2 miles (1.6 to 3.2 km) wide, and 24 miles (39 km) long, and leveled 15,000 acres (6,100 ha; 23 sq mi) of mature pine forest.[138]

The climate at Yellowstone Lake is classified as subarctic (Dfc), according to Köppen-Geiger climate classification, while at the park headquarters the classification is humid continental (Dfb).

showClimate data for Yellowstone Lake, elev. 7,870 feet (2,399 m)
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Record high °F (°C) | 46 (8) | 56 (13) | 61 (16) | 65 (18) | 78 (26) | 83 (28) | 92 (33) | 91 (33) | 83 (28) | 72 (22) | 63 (17) | 48 (9) | 92 (33)
Average high °F (°C) | 24.4 (−4.2) | 28.0 (−2.2) | 36.2 (2.3) | 43.3 (6.3) | 51.9 (11.1) | 61.6 (16.4) | 71.6 (22.0) | 71.4 (21.9) | 61.6 (16.4) | 47.8 (8.8) | 33.5 (0.8) | 24.3 (−4.3) | 46.4 (8.0)
Average low °F (°C) | 1.2 (−17.1) | 1.2 (−17.1) | 9.2 (−12.7) | 18.0 (−7.8) | 28.0 (−2.2) | 35.4 (1.9) | 41.6 (5.3) | 39.9 (4.4) | 31.8 (−0.1) | 23.7 (−4.6) | 13.8 (−10.1) | 5.0 (−15.0) | 20.8 (−6.2)
Record low °F (°C) | −50 (−46) | −50 (−46) | −42 (−41) | −26 (−32) | −2 (−19) | 14 (−10) | 20 (−7) | 17 (−8) | −5 (−21) | −13 (−25) | −30 (−34) | −43 (−42) | −50 (−46)
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.65 (42) | 1.61 (41) | 1.80 (46) | 1.78 (45) | 2.47 (63) | 2.25 (57) | 1.62 (41) | 1.60 (41) | 1.46 (37) | 1.18 (30) | 1.85 (47) | 1.63 (41) | 20.90 (531)
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 34.3 (87) | 30.4 (77) | 25.6 (65) | 21.4 (54) | 8.1 (21) | 1.3 (3.3) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 1.3 (3.3) | 9.9 (25) | 30.9 (78) | 30.5 (77) | 193.7 (492)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 16.8 | 14.0 | 13.7 | 11.6 | 11.5 | 14.4 | 11.0 | 10.8 | 9.7 | 8.8 | 13.1 | 15.6 | 151
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 16.2 | 13.4 | 12.6 | 9.5 | 4.4 | 0.9 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 | 5.8 | 12.6 | 14.9 | 91.4
Source 1: NOAA (normals, 1981–2010)[139]
Source 2: The Weather Channel (Records)[140]

showClimate data for Yellowstone Park Headquarters, elev. 6,230 feet (1,899 m)
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Record high °F (°C) | 52 (11) | 56 (13) | 66 (19) | 78 (26) | 86 (30) | 92 (33) | 99 (37) | 97 (36) | 92 (33) | 82 (28) | 66 (19) | 52 (11) | 99 (37)
Average high °F (°C) | 30.2 (−1.0) | 33.4 (0.8) | 40.8 (4.9) | 48.9 (9.4) | 59.0 (15.0) | 68.6 (20.3) | 79.3 (26.3) | 78.6 (25.9) | 67.4 (19.7) | 52.8 (11.6) | 37.7 (3.2) | 28.7 (−1.8) | 52.1 (11.2)
Average low °F (°C) | 12.0 (−11.1) | 13.0 (−10.6) | 20.1 (−6.6) | 26.7 (−2.9) | 34.8 (1.6) | 42.3 (5.7) | 48.3 (9.1) | 46.7 (8.2) | 38.4 (3.6) | 29.4 (−1.4) | 19.8 (−6.8) | 11.3 (−11.5) | 28.6 (−1.9)
Record low °F (°C) | −36 (−38) | −35 (−37) | −25 (−32) | −4 (−20) | 6 (−14) | 20 (−7) | 21 (−6) | 24 (−4) | 0 (−18) | −8 (−22) | −27 (−33) | −35 (−37) | −36 (−38)
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.73 (19) | 0.64 (16) | 0.95 (24) | 1.30 (33) | 2.06 (52) | 1.95 (50) | 1.46 (37) | 1.06 (27) | 1.14 (29) | 1.28 (33) | 1.03 (26) | 0.81 (21) | 14.41 (366)
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 11.1 (28) | 8.5 (22) | 10.4 (26) | 8.0 (20) | 2.2 (5.6) | 0.3 (0.76) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0.3 (0.76) | 4.0 (10) | 9.4 (24) | 10.2 (26) | 64.4 (164)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 9.8 | 9.0 | 9.1 | 9.7 | 12.8 | 13.3 | 9.9 | 8.9 | 8.2 | 8.4 | 9.8 | 10.2 | 119.1
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 8.0 | 7.1 | 6.4 | 4.8 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 2.6 | 7.2 | 8.3 | 45.9
Source 1: NOAA (normals, 1981–2010)[141]
Source 2: Western Regional Climate Center (extremes 1894–present)[142]

## Recreation[edit]

Union Pacific Railroad brochure promoting travel to the park (1921)

Yellowstone ranks among the most popular national parks in the United States. Since the mid-1960s, at least 2 million tourists have visited the park almost every year.[143] Average annual visitation increased to 3.5 million during the ten-year period from 2007 to 2016, with a record of 4,257,177 recreational visitors in 2016.[144] July is the busiest month for Yellowstone National Park.[145] At peak summer levels, 3,700 employees work for Yellowstone National Park concessionaires. Concessionaires manage nine hotels and lodges, with a total of 2,238 hotel rooms and cabins available. They also oversee gas stations, stores and most of the campgrounds. Another 800 employees work either permanently or seasonally for the National Park Service.[9]

Tourists watch Old Faithful erupt, 2019.

Park service roads lead to major features; however, road reconstruction has produced temporary road closures. Yellowstone is in the midst of a long term road reconstruction effort, which is hampered by a short repair season. In the winter, all roads aside from the one which enters from Gardiner, Montana, and extends to Cooke City, Montana, are closed to wheeled vehicles.[146] Park roads are closed to wheeled vehicles from early November to mid April, but some park roads remain closed until mid-May.[147] The park has 310 miles (500 km) of paved roads which can be accessed from five different entrances.[9] There is no public transportation available inside the park, but several tour companies can be contacted for guided motorized transport. In the winter, concessionaires operate guided snowmobile and snow coach tours, though their numbers and access are based on quotas established by the National Park Service.[148] Facilities in the Old Faithful, Canyon and Mammoth Hot Springs areas of the park are very busy during the summer months. Traffic jams created by road construction or by people observing wildlife can result in long delays.

Old Faithful Inn

The National Park Service maintains 9 visitor centers and museums and is responsible for maintenance of historical structures and many of the other 2,000 buildings. These structures include National Historical Landmarks such as the Old Faithful Inn built from 1903 to 1904 and the entire Fort Yellowstone – Mammoth Hot Springs Historic District. An historical and educational tour is available at Fort Yellowstone which details the history of the National Park Service and the development of the park. Campfire programs, guided walks and other interpretive presentations are available at numerous locations in the summer, and on a limited basis during other seasons.

Camping is available at a dozen campgrounds with more than 2,000 campsites.[9] Camping is also available in surrounding National Forests, as well as in Grand Teton National Park to the south. Backcountry campsites are accessible only by foot or by horseback and require a permit. There are 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of hiking trails available.[149] The park is not considered to be a good destination for mountaineering because of the instability of volcanic rock which predominates. Visitors with pets are required to keep them on a leash at all times and are limited to areas near roadways and in "frontcountry" zones such as drive in campgrounds.[150] Around thermal features, wooden and paved trails have been constructed to ensure visitor safety, and most of these areas are handicapped accessible. The National Park Service maintains a year-round clinic at Mammoth Hot Springs and provides emergency services throughout the year.[151]

Hunting is not permitted, though it is allowed in the surrounding national forests during open season. Fishing is a popular activity, and a Yellowstone Park fishing license is required to fish in park waters.[152] Many park waters are fly fishing only and all native fish species are catch and release only.[153] Boating is prohibited on rivers and creeks except for a 5 miles (8.0 km) stretch of the Lewis River between Lewis and Shoshone Lake, and it is open to non-motorized use only. Yellowstone Lake has a marina, and the lake is the most popular boating destination.[154]

Vintage photo of human-habituated bears seeking food from visitors

In the early history of the park, visitors were allowed, and sometimes even encouraged, to feed the bears. Visitors welcomed the chance to get their pictures taken with the bears, who had learned to beg for food. This led to numerous injuries to humans each year. In 1970, park officials changed their policy and started a vigorous program to educate the public on the dangers of close contact with bears, and to try to eliminate opportunities for bears to find food in campgrounds and trash collection areas. Although it has become more difficult to observe bears in recent years, the number of human injuries and deaths has taken a significant drop and visitors are in less danger.[155] The eighth recorded bear-related death in the park's history occurred in August 2015.[156]

Other protected lands in the region include Caribou-Targhee, Gallatin, Custer, Shoshone and Bridger-Teton National Forests. The National Park Service's John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway is to the south and leads to Grand Teton National Park. The famed Beartooth Highway provides access from the northeast and has spectacular high altitude scenery. Nearby communities include West Yellowstone, Montana; Cody, Wyoming; Red Lodge, Montana; Ashton, Idaho; and Gardiner, Montana. The closest air transport is available by way of Bozeman, Montana; Billings, Montana; Jackson; Cody, Wyoming, or Idaho Falls, Idaho.[157] Salt Lake City, 320 miles (510 km) to the south, is the closest large metropolitan area.

## Legal jurisdiction[edit]

Idaho portion of park highlighted in southwest corner (click to enlarge)

The entire park is within the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the District of Wyoming, making it the only federal court district that includes portions of more than one state (Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming). Law professor Brian C. Kalt has argued that it may be impossible to impanel a jury in compliance with the Vicinage Clause of the Sixth Amendment for a crime committed solely in the unpopulated Idaho portion of the park (and that it would be difficult to do so for a crime committed solely in the lightly populated Montana portion).[158] One defendant, who was accused of a wildlife-related crime in the Montana portion of the park, attempted to raise this argument but eventually pleaded guilty, with the plea deal including his specific agreement not to raise the issue in his appeal.[159][160][161]

## See also[edit]

- Bibliography of Yellowstone National Park
- List of national parks of the United States
- Outline of Yellowstone National Park
- Making North America (2015 PBS film)
- National Parks in Idaho
- Yellowstone-Teton Clean Energy Coalition

## References[edit]

1. ^
   "Yellowstone in United States of America". protectedplanet.net. IUCN. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
2. ^ "Yellowstone National Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. August 31, 1992. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
3. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Listing of acreage as of December 31, 2011". Land Resource Division, National Park Service. Retrieved March 8, 2012.
4. ^ "Annual Visitation Highlights". nps.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
5. ^ "Yellowstone National Park". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Archived from the original on February 24, 2017. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
6. ^ "Yellowstone, the First National Park". Archived from the original on May 11, 2017.
7. ^ Jump up to: a b "U.S. Statutes at Large, Vol. 17, Chap. 24, pp. 32–33. "An Act to set apart a certain Tract of Land lying near the Head-waters of the Yellowstone River as a public Park." [S. 392]". Archived from the original on June 24, 2013.
8. ^ "Biosphere Reserve Information – United States – Yellowstone". UNESCO – MAB Biosphere Reserves Directory. UNESCO. August 17, 2000. Archived from the original on August 4, 2007. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
9. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Park Facts". National Park Service. December 22, 2015. Archived from the original on December 13, 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
10. ^ "Yellowstone, History and Culture". National Park Service. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved May 8, 2011.
11. ^ "eRecords of the National Park Service [NPS]". National Archives. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
12. ^ "Questions About Yellowstone Volcanic History". United States Geological Survey, Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. Archived from the original on June 30, 2011. Retrieved May 6, 2011.
13. ^ Bryan, T. Scott (2008). The Geysers of Yellowstone (Fourth ed.). University Press of Colorado. p. 9.
14. ^ Johnson, JB; Anderson, JF; Anthony, RE; Sciotto, M (April 15, 2013). "Detecting geyser activity with infrasound". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 256: 105–117. Bibcode:2013JVGR..256..105J. doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2013.02.016.
15. ^ Jump up to: a b "Yellowstone National Park". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved August 5, 2018. Yellowstone's principal attractions, however, are its some 10,000 hydrothermal features, which constitute roughly half of all those known in the world.
16. ^ Jump up to: a b Schullery, Paul. "The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem". Our Living Resources. U.S. Geological Survey. Archived from the original on September 25, 2006. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
17. ^ Rediscovering Yellowstone. Enduring World. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
18. ^ Macdonald, James S., Jr. (December 27, 2006). "History of Yellowstone as a Place Name". Archived from the original on January 21, 2013. Retrieved December 14, 2008.
19. ^ "Yellowstone: A Brief History of the Park" (PDF). U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 14, 2008.
20. ^ Lahren, Larry (2006). Homeland: An archaeologist's view of Yellowstone Country's past. Cayuse Press. p. 161. ISBN 978-0-9789251-0-9.
21. ^ Jump up to: a b Janetski, Joel C. (1987). Indians in Yellowstone National Park. Salt Lake City, Utah: University of Utah Press. ISBN 978-0-87480-724-0.
22. ^ Haines, Aubrey L. (2000). "The Lewis and Clark Era (1805–1814)". Yellowstone National Park: Its Exploration and Establishment. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on October 15, 2006. Retrieved November 14, 2006.
23. ^ Haines, Aubrey L. (2000). "The Fur Trade Era (1818–42)". Yellowstone National Park: Its Exploration and Establishment. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on October 15, 2006. Retrieved November 15, 2006.
24. ^ Baldwin, Kenneth H. (1976). "Enchanted Enclosure-Historic Roads in the National Park System-Chapter 2 – The Raynolds Expedition of 1860". Historical Division, Office of the Chief Of Engineers, United States Army. Archived from the original on December 9, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
25. ^ Haines, Aubrey L. (1975). "The Exploring Era (1851–63)". Yellowstone National Park: Its Exploration and Establishment. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on October 15, 2006. Retrieved November 14, 2006.
26. ^ Haines, Aubrey L. (2000). "The Folsom Party (1869)". Yellowstone National Park: Its Exploration and Establishment. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on June 11, 2007. Retrieved October 9, 2007.
27. ^ Haines, Aubrey L. (2000). "Cornelius Hedges". Yellowstone National Park: Its Exploration and Establishment. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on June 10, 2007. Retrieved October 9, 2007.
28. ^ "The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone". American Studies at the University of Virginia. University of Virginia. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
29. ^ "History & Culture". General Grant National Memorial. National Park Service. July 25, 2006. Archived from the original on April 13, 2012. Retrieved April 23, 2007.
30. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Marlene Deahl Merrill (2003). Yellowstone and the Great West: Journals, Letters, and Images from the 1871 Hayden Expedition. U of Nebraska Press. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-8032-8289-6. Archived from the original on January 3, 2014. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
31. ^ Marlene Deahl Merrill (2003). Yellowstone and the Great West: Journals, Letters, and Images from the 1871 Hayden Expedition. U of Nebraska Press. pp. 210–211. ISBN 978-0-8032-8289-6. Archived from the original on January 3, 2014. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
32. ^ Jump up to: a b Chittenden, Hiram Martin (1915). The Yellowstone National Park-Historical and Descriptive. Cincinnati: Stewart and Kidd Co. pp. 77–78.
33. ^ Jones, William A. (1875). Report Upon the Reconnaissance of Northwestern Wyoming, Including Yellowstone National Park, Made in the Summer of 1873. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 1. ISBN 0331948184.
34. ^ Wheeler, Olin Dunbar (2010). Enlarge Image Nathaniel Pitt Langford: The Vigilante, the Explorer, the Expounder and First Superintendent of the Yellowstone Park. Nabu Press. ISBN 978-1-177-37550-4.
35. ^ Dilsaver, Lary M.; William Wyckoff (May 2005). "The Political Geography of National Parks". The Pacific Historical Review. 74 (2): 237–266. doi:10.1525/phr.2005.74.2.237.
36. ^ Wuerthner, 11-15-07, George (November 15, 2007). "NREPA: Local Interests and Conservation History". George Wuerthner's On the Range. NewWest. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
37. ^ Chittenden, Hiram Martin (1904). Yellowstone National Park: Historical and Descriptive. Cincinnati: The Robert Clarke Company. p. 93.
38. ^ "Report of the Superintendent of the Yellowstone National Park to the Secretary of the Interior for the year 1872". Archived from the original on January 15, 2017.
39. ^ Punke, Michael (2007). Last Stand: George Bird Grinnell, the Battle to Save the Buffalo, and the Birth of the New West. Smithsonian Books. p. 102. ISBN 978-0-06-089782-6.
40. ^ "Yellowstone National Park's First 130 Years". Yellowstone History. National Park Service. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2007.
41. ^ Jump up to: a b Rydell, Kiki Leigh; Mary Shivers Culpin (July 5, 2006). "The Administrations of Nathaniel Langford and Philetus Norris" (PDF). A History of Administrative Development in Yellowstone National Park, 1872–1965. Yellowstone National Park. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
42. ^ Griske, Michael (2005). The Diaries of John Hunton. Heritage Books. pp. 121, 122. ISBN 978-0-7884-3804-2.
43. ^ "Yellowstone National Park's First 130 Years". Yellowstone History. National Park Service. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
44. ^ Griske, op. cit., p. 122
45. ^ "Yellowstone National Park's First 130 Years". Yellowstone History. National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 14, 2012. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
46. ^ Culpin, Marcy Shivers (May 22, 2002). "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: North Entrance Road Historic District". Yellowstone National Park: National Park Service. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
47. ^ Jump up to: a b Merchant, Carolyn (2002). The Columbia Guide to American Environmental History. Columbia University Press. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-231-11232-1.
48. ^ Jump up to: a b Chittenden, Hiram Martin (1895). The Yellowstone National Park: historical and descriptive. The R. Clarke Company. pp. 111–122. OCLC 3015335.
49. ^ Jump up to: a b Duncan, Dayton; Ken Burns (2009). The National Parks: America's Best Idea. Alred A. Knopf. pp. 37–38. ISBN 978-0-307-26896-9.
50. ^ "Nez Perce Creek". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
51. ^ Jump up to: a b Rydell, Kiki Leigh; Mary Shivers Culpin (July 5, 2006). "The United States Army Takes Control of Yellowstone National Park 1886–1906" (PDF). A History of Administrative Development in Yellowstone National Park, 1872–1965. Yellowstone National Park. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
52. ^ Grinnell, George Bird (1910). The History of the Boone and Crockett Club. New York City: Forest and Stream Publishing Company. pp. 10–21.
53. ^ Rydell, Kiki Leigh; Mary Shivers Culpin (July 5, 2006). "The National Park Service in Yellowstone National Park 1917–1929" (PDF). A History of Administrative Development in Yellowstone National Park, 1872–1965. Yellowstone National Park. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
54. ^ Muir, John (April 1898). "The Yellowstone National Park". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on March 12, 2017.
55. ^ Jordan Fisher Smith (June 7, 2016). Engineering Eden. Crown/Archetype. p. 37. ISBN 978-0307454263. Archived from the original on February 11, 2017.
56. ^ "Yellowstone National Park's First 130 Years". Yellowstone History. National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 14, 2012. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
57. ^ Matthew A. Redinger, "The Civilian Conservation Corps and the Development of Glacier and Yellowstone Parks, 1933–1942," Pacific Northwest Forum, 1991, Vol. 4 Issue 2, pp. 3–17
58. ^ Rydell, Kiki Leigh; Mary Shivers Culpin (July 5, 2006). "Mission 66 in Yellowstone National Park 1941–1965" (PDF). A History of Administrative Development in Yellowstone National Park, 1872–1965. Yellowstone National Park. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 16, 2007. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
59. ^ Allaback, Sarah (2000). "Mission 66 Visitor Centers". U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on March 11, 2007. Retrieved February 28, 2007.
60. ^ "Canyon Area NPS Visitor Facilities". U.S. Department of the Interior. August 22, 2006. Archived from the original on May 5, 2007. Retrieved April 8, 2007.
61. ^ Jump up to: a b "Largest Earthquake in Montana". Historic Earthquakes. U.S. Geological Survey. January 24, 2007. Archived from the original on June 8, 2007. Retrieved March 20, 2007.
62. ^ Leopold, A. Starker; et al. (1963). "The Goal of Park Management in the United States". Wildlife Management in the National Parks. National Park Service. Archived from the original on December 3, 2009. Retrieved September 19, 2009.
63. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Wildland Fire in Yellowstone". National Park Service. July 26, 2006. Archived from the original on October 7, 2006. Retrieved February 28, 2007.
64. ^ Patry, Marc; Bassett, Clare; Leclerq, Benedicte (March 11–13, 2003). "The State of Conservation of World Heritage Forests" (PDF). Proceedings of the 2nd World Heritage Forest Meeting. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
65. ^ "Yellowstone Quarter Introduced". United States Mint. Archived from the original on August 20, 2010.
66. ^ Justin Farrell, The Battle for Yellowstone: Morality and the Sacred Roots of Environmental Conflict (Princeton UP, 2015).
67. ^ "Heritage and Research Center". National Park Service. Archived from the original on November 24, 2009. Retrieved November 24, 2009.
68. ^ "Yellowstone National Park Archives". National Park Service. Archived from the original on December 3, 2009. Retrieved November 20, 2009.
69. ^ "Affiliated Archives". National Archives. Archived from the original on January 7, 2010. Retrieved November 20, 2009.
70. ^ "Update Regarding COVID-19 (Coronavirus) for Yellowstone Forever Program Participants". Yellowstone Forever. March 24, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
71. ^ Park, Mailing Address: PO Box 168 Yellowstone National; Us, WY 82190-0168 Phone: 307-344-7381 Contact. "Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
72. ^ "The Snake River Plain". U.S. Geological Survey. March 12, 2001. Archived from the original on April 12, 2013. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
73. ^ Jump up to: a b James, David; Fouch, Matthew; Carlson, Richard W.; Roth, Jeffrey (2011). "Slab Fragmentation, Edge Flow and the Origin of the Yellowstone Hotspot Track". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 311 (1–2): 124–135. Bibcode:2011E&PSL.311..124J. doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2011.09.007.
74. ^ Zhou, Ying (2018). "Anomalous mantle transition zone beneath the Yellowstone hotspot track". Nature Geoscience. 11 (6): 449–453. Bibcode:2018NatGe..11..449Z. doi:10.1038/s41561-018-0126-4. S2CID 134251160.
75. ^ Oskin, Becky (April 17, 2013). "Yellowstone's Volcano Bigger Than Thought". LiveScience. Archived from the original on July 2, 2013. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
76. ^ "The Quaternary and Pliocene Yellowstone Plateau Volcanic Field of Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana". U.S. Geological Survey. August 27, 2001. Archived from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved May 11, 2013./
77. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Tracking Changes in Yellowstone's Restless Volcanic System". U.S. Geological Survey. January 19, 2006. Archived from the original on February 6, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
78. ^ Jump up to: a b "Volcanic History of the Yellowstone Plateau Volcanic Field". Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. U.S. Geological Survey. February 2, 2007. Archived from the original on March 18, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
79. ^ Bindeman, Ilya N. (June 2006). "The Secrets of Supervolcanoes". Scientific American. 294 (6): 36–43. Bibcode:2006SciAm.294f..36B. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0606-36. PMID 16711358. Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
80. ^ "Questions About Future Volcanic Activity". Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. U.S. Geological Survey. February 2, 2007. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved April 8, 2007.
81. ^ Cross, Jeff (October 8–10, 2012). How many geysers are found in Yellowstone?. The 11th Biennial Scientific Conference on the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
82. ^ Lundquist, Laura (August 2, 2013). "Dormant Yellowstone geyser erupts". The Bozeman Daily Chronicle.
83. ^ Vaughan, R. Greg; Heasler, Henry; Jaworowski, Cheryl; Lowenstern, Jacob B.; Keszthely, Laszlo P. (2014). "Provisional Maps of Thermal Areas in Yellowstone National Park, based on Satellite Thermal Infrared Imaging and Field Observations" (PDF). U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. p. 6. Scientific Investigations Report 2014–5137.
84. ^ "Yellowstone National Park". World Heritage Sites. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. April 23, 2007. Archived from the original on February 24, 2017. Retrieved April 23, 2007.
85. ^ "Information about the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory". Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. U.S. Geological Survey. February 2, 2007. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
86. ^ "Notable Changes in Thermal Activity at Norris Geyser Basin Provide Opportunity to Study Hydrothermal System". Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. U.S. Geological Survey. March 16, 2005. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
87. ^ "Frequently asked questions about recent findings at Yellowstone Lake". Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. U.S. Geological Survey. Archived from the original on February 4, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
88. ^ "Archive of Stories About the Yellowstone Volcanic System". Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. U.S. Geological Survey. February 2, 2007. Archived from the original on February 10, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
89. ^ "Earthquake Swarms at Yellowstone Continue". Inland Park News. December 19, 2008. Archived from the original on May 20, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
90. ^ Smith, Robert B.; Wu-Lung Chang; Lee Siegel (November 8, 2007). "Yellowstone rising: Volcano inflating with molten rock at record rate". Press release, University of Utah Public Relations. EurekAlert! (American Association for the Advancement of Science). Archived from the original on November 15, 2007. Retrieved November 9, 2007.
91. ^ Lowenstern, Jake (June 2005). "Truth, fiction and everything in between at Yellowstone". Geotimes. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
92. ^ "M 7.2 – Hebgen Lake, Wyoming Earthquake". earthquake.usgs.gov. United States Geological Survey via the International Seismological Centre. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
93. ^ "More Than A Dozen Earthquakes Shake Yellowstone". KUTV News. May 6, 2007. Archived from the original on May 26, 2007. Retrieved May 7, 2007.
94. ^ "Archive of Yellowstone Updates for 2008". Yellowstone Volcanic Observatory. Archived from the original on January 23, 2009. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
95. ^ "Yellowstone hit by swarm of earthquakes". The Denver Post. January 18, 2010. Archived from the original on January 21, 2010.
96. ^ "Latest Earthquakes – US " Yellowstone Region". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on December 6, 2008.
97. ^ "4.8 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Yellowstone National Park". Liberty Voice. March 30, 2014. Archived from the original on March 31, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
98. ^ Kendall, Katherine. "Whitebark Pine". Our Living Resources. U.S. Geological Survey. Archived from the original on September 27, 2006. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
99. ^ "Presence Of Wolves Allows Aspen Recovery In Yellowstone". Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved August 1, 2007.
100. ^ "Where Are the Bloomin' Wildflowers?" (PDF). National Park Service. February 2004. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 16, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
101. ^ "Yellowstone Sand Verbena". Nature and Science. National Park Service. July 20, 2006. Archived from the original on June 7, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
102. ^ "Microbes In Colorful Yellowstone Hot Springs Fueled By Hydrogen, CU-Boulder Researchers Say". University of Colorado at Boulder. January 24, 2005. Archived from the original on April 26, 2013. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
103. ^ "The Yellowstone Thermophiles Conservation Project". World Foundation for Environment and Development. April 27, 2004. Archived from the original on March 20, 2007. Retrieved March 15, 2007.
104. ^ Baker, Brett J.; Saw, Jimmy H.; Lind, Anders E.; Lazar, Cassandra Sara; Hinrichs, Kai-Uwe; Teske, Andreas P.; Ettema, Thijs J.G. (February 16, 2016). "Genomic inference of the metabolism of cosmopolitan subsurface Archaea, Hadesarchaea". Nature Microbiology. 1 (3): 16002. doi:10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.2. PMID 27572167.
105. ^ Atherton, Matt (February 15, 2016). "God of the underworld microbes Hadesarchaea discovered living on toxic gas deep below Yellowstone hot springs". IB Times. Archived from the original on February 29, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
106. ^ "Exotic Vegetation Management in Yellowstone National Park" (PDF). Nature and Science. National Park Service. February 1, 2006. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
107. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Brucellosis and Yellowstone Bison". Brucellosis. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. Archived from the original on February 28, 2007. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
108. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions About Bison". Nature and Science. National Park Service. August 9, 2006. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
109. ^ Prettyman, Brett (January 10, 2008). "Moving Bison". Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on April 8, 2008. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
110. ^ Jump up to: a b "Defenders of Wildlife". A Yellowstone Chronology. Archived from the original on June 7, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
111. ^ Jump up to: a b "Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery 2005 Interagency Annual Report" (PDF). U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Nez Perce Tribe, National Park Service, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Idaho Fish and Game, and USDA Wildlife Services. 2006. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 16, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
112. ^ "Final Rule Designating the Northern Rocky Mountain Population of Gray Wolf as a Distinct Population Segment and Removing This Distinct Population Segment From the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife". U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. February 27, 2008. Archived from the original on January 21, 2009. Retrieved June 11, 2008.
113. ^ Jump up to: a b "Black Bears". National Park Service. March 31, 2014. Archived from the original on April 18, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
114. ^ "Black Bear Information Continued". National Park Service. April 3, 2014. Archived from the original on April 18, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
115. ^ Frank T. van Manen, Mark A. Haroldson, and Bryn E. Karabensh (2018). "Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Investigations 2017: Annual Report of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team" (archive). page 23 (of PDF file). U.S. Geological Survey, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, U.S. Forest Service, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribal Fish and Game Department. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
116. ^ "Grizzly Bears". nps.gov. National Park Service. April 2, 2018. Archived from the original on October 10, 2018. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
117. ^ Jump up to: a b "Grizzly Bears & the Endangered Species Act". nps.gov. National Park Service. October 5, 2018. Archived from the original on October 13, 2018. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
118. ^ Mott, Maryann (July 2, 2004). "Bald Eagle, Grizzly: U.S. Icons Endangered No More?". National Geographic News. Archived from the original on December 10, 2006. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
119. ^ Jim Robbins (September 25, 2018). "Hunt of Yellowstone Grizzly Bears Canceled as a Result of Judge's Ruling". The New York Times. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
120. ^ "Transporting Carcasses Through Yellowstone". National Park Service. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
121. ^ "2006–2007 Winter Count of Northern Yellowstone Elk". National Park Service. January 16, 2007. Archived from the original on May 20, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
122. ^ Potter, Tiffany (April 13, 2004). "Reproduction of Canada Lynx Discovered in Yellowstone". Nature: Year in Review. National Park Service. Archived from the original on March 25, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
123. ^ "Mountain Lions". National Park Service. July 26, 2006. Archived from the original on September 3, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
124. ^ Marquis, Amy Leinbach (Summer 2006). "Out of Sight, Out of Mind". National Parks. 80 (3): 20–21.
125. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fishing in Yellowstone National Park". National Park Service. April 4, 2007. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
126. ^ "The Yellowstone Lake Crisis: Confronting a Lake Trout Invasion" (PDF). National Park Service. 1995. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
127. ^ Kendall, W. C. (1915). The Fishes of the Yellowstone National Park. Washington D.C.: Department of Commerce, Bureau of Fisheries. pp. 22–23.
128. ^ "Vital Habitats: Wetlands and Wildlife" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 16, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
129. ^ "Threatened and Endangered Species". National Park Service. July 26, 2006. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
130. ^ "Species of Special Concern". National Park Service. July 28, 2006. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved March 19, 2007.
131. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fire Ecology". Yellowstone Wildland Fire. National Park Service. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on February 9, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
132. ^ "Yellowstone National Park: Mount Washburn". Backpacker Magazine. Cruz Bay Publishing, Inc. Archived from the original on April 15, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
133. ^ "Yellowstone Lookouts". Yellowstone Wildland Fire. National Park Service. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on December 16, 2006. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
134. ^ "Fire Facts". Yellowstone Wildland Fire. National Park Service. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on April 25, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
135. ^ "Fire Monitoring". Yellowstone Wildland Fire. National Park Service. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on February 6, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
136. ^ "Prescribed Fire". Yellowstone Wildland Fire. National Park Service. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on June 10, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
137. ^ Jump up to: a b "Weather". National Park Service. December 20, 2006. Archived from the original on March 15, 2007. Retrieved March 20, 2007.
138. ^ "Severe Weather". Wyoming Climate Office. March 14, 2007. Archived from the original on February 19, 2007. Retrieved March 20, 2007.
139. ^ "WY Lake Yellowstone". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
140. ^ "Monthly Averages for Yellowstone Lake, Wyoming". The Weather Channel. Archived from the original on December 1, 2013. Retrieved January 16, 2011.
141. ^ "WY Yellowstone PK Mammoth". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
142. ^ "Yellowstone Park, Wyoming". Western Regional Climate Center. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
143. ^ "Historical Annual Visitation Statistics". Yellowstone National Park. U.S. Department of the Interior. August 10, 2006. Archived from the original on October 14, 2006. Retrieved December 13, 2006.
144. ^ "NPS Annual Recreation Visits Report". National Park Service. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
145. ^ "Cool Yellowstone becoming hotter vacation spot". CNN Travel. August 4, 2010. Archived from the original on August 6, 2010.
146. ^ "Road Construction Delays and Closures". National Park Service. April 9, 2007. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2007.
147. ^ "Operating Hours & Seasons". National Park Service. April 22, 2007. Archived from the original on September 15, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
148. ^ "Winter Services in Yellowstone". National Park Service. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
149. ^ "Hiking in the Park". National Park Service. August 17, 2006. Archived from the original on April 3, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
150. ^ "Regulations Regarding Pets". National Park Service. July 12, 2006. Archived from the original on September 23, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
151. ^ "Information Every Visitor Needs to Know". National Park Service. March 6, 2007. Archived from the original on September 23, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
152. ^ "Fishing in Yellowstone National Park". National Park Service. April 4, 2007. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
153. ^ 2007 Yellowstone National Park Fishing Regulations Archived January 17, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
154. ^ "Boating in Yellowstone National Park". National Park Service. September 18, 2006. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
155. ^ National Park Service Archived February 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
156. ^ "Bear Inflicted Human Injuries and Fatalities in Yellowstone". U.S. National Park Service. January 5, 2015. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
157. ^ "Directions". National Park Service. January 4, 2007. Archived from the original on September 23, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2007.
158. ^ Brian C. Kalt, The Perfect Crime, 93
     Geo. L.J. 675 (2005).
159. ^ "The perfect place for the perfect crime". trib.com. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved July 18, 2011.
160. ^ United States v. Belderrain, 309 F. App'x 259 (10th Cir. 2009).
161. ^ Brian C. Kalt, Tabloid Constitutionalism, 96 Geo. L.J. 1971 (2008).

## External links[edit]

- Official website of the National Park Service
- Act Establishing Yellowstone National Park from the Library of Congress
- Congressional Acts Pertaining to Yellowstone
- The Yellowstone magmatic system from the mantle plume to the upper crust at Science (registration required)
- BYU Larsen Yellowstone collection at the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Library of Brigham Young University
- Yellowstone articles, photos and videos at National Geographic
- Photographic library of the U.S. Geological Survey (archive)
- The short film A Visit to Yellowstone National Park (c. 1932) is available for free download at the Internet Archive
- The short film Four Seasons of Yellowstone (1970) is available for free download at the Internet Archive
- The short film Fantastic Yellowstone (1997) is available for free download at the Internet Archive

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yellowstone_National_Park&oldid=1001341272"
Categories:

- IUCN Category II
- Yellowstone National Park
- 1872 establishments in Idaho Territory
- 1872 establishments in Montana Territory
- 1872 establishments in Wyoming Territory
- 1872 establishments in the United States
- Biosphere reserves of the United States
- Civilian Conservation Corps in Idaho
- Civilian Conservation Corps in Montana
- Civilian Conservation Corps in Wyoming
- Geysers of Wyoming
- Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
- History of the Rocky Mountains
- History of Wyoming
- Hot springs of Wyoming
- Hot springs of Teton County, Wyoming
- Landforms of Park County, Wyoming
- Landforms of Teton County, Wyoming
- National parks in Idaho
- National parks in Montana
- National parks in Wyoming
- National parks of the Rocky Mountains
- Protected areas established in 1872
- Protected areas of Fremont County, Idaho
- Protected areas of Gallatin County, Montana
- Protected areas of Park County, Montana
- Protected areas of Park County, Wyoming
- Protected areas of Teton County, Wyoming
- Regions of Wyoming
- World Heritage Sites in the United States
- Yellowstone Caldera

Hidden categories:

- Webarchive template wayback links
- Wikipedia indefinitely move-protected pages
- Articles with short description
- Short description is different from Wikidata
- Use American English from February 2019
- All Wikipedia articles written in American English
- Use mdy dates from February 2019
- Coordinates on Wikidata
- Articles containing French-language text
- Articles containing Hidatsa-language text
- Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2017
- All articles containing potentially dated statements
- Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata
- Pages using Sister project links with default search
- Featured articles
- Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with NARA identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with NKC identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with NLG identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with NLI identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers
- Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers
- Pages using the Kartographer extension