Science and Resource Management National Park Service Grand Teton National Park U.S. Department of the Interior & John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK & John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway Natural and Cultural Resources VITAL SIGNS 2019 ...: GRAND TETON ASSOCIATION This report is made possible through generous support from Grand Teton National Park Foundation and Grand Teton Association. It shares natural and cultural resource data collected during the calendar year 2019 and compiled in 2020. Science and Resource Management Grand Teton National Park & John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway P.O. Drawer 170 Moose, WY 83012 www.nps.gov/grte 2 Vital Signs 2019• Grand Teton National Park Acknowledgments To supplement funding from the National Park Service and work done by Grand Teton National Park staf, the following organizations supported the monitoring of vital signs included in this report: • Biodiversity Research Institute • Craighead Beringia South • Colorado State University, Federal Land Manager Environmental Database • Charles Engelhard Foundation • Cross Charitable Foundation • Grand Teton Association • Grand Teton National Park Foundation • Greater Yellowstone Coalition • Greater Yellowstone Coordinating Committee • Greater Yellowstone Whitebark Pine Monitoring Working Group • Idaho Department of Fish and Game • Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (US Geological Survey–Biological Resources Division, National Park Service, US Forest Service, and the states of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming) • Iowa Chapter of Foundation for North American Wild Sheep • Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum • Jackson Hole One Fly Foundation • Jackson Hole Weed Management Association • Knobloch Family Foundation • Meg and Bert Raynes Wildlife Fund • Mule Deer Foundation, Snake River Chapter • National Park Service Air Resources Division • National Park Service Greater Yellowstone Inventory and Monitoring Network • National Park Service Northern Rockies Exotic Plant Management Team • Northern Rockies Conservation Cooperative • Patagonia World Trout Initiative • Ricketts Conservation Foundation • Teton Conservation District • US Fish and Wildlife Service, National Elk Refuge • US Forest Service, Bridger-Teton National Forest • US Forest Service, Forest Health Protection • US Geological Survey, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center and Columbia Environmental Research Center • University of Wyoming-National Park Service Research Station • Upper Snake River Basin Sage Grouse Working Group • Western Regional Climate Data Center • Wildlife Conservation Society • Wyoming Game and Fish Department • Wyoming State Climate Ofce • Wyoming State Historic Preservation Ofce • Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation Holly McKinney, Editor and Design Email: [email protected] Suggested citation: U.S. Department of Interior, National Park Service, Grand Teton National Park & John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway: Resource Report 2019, Moose, Wyoming, USA, 2020. Cover painting: Elk Near the Cathedral Group by Bill Freeman. Gift from the Grand Teton Association to Grand Teton National Park. Where not otherwise indicated, photos in this report are courtesy of the National Park Service. Grand Teton National Park • 2019 Vital Signs 3 Table of Contents Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................... 3 Why We Monitor the Park’s Resources........................................................................................... 5 Vital Signs Summary........................................................................................................................ 6 Climate and Environment................................................................................................................ 7 Air Quality............................................................................................................................ 7 Climate................................................................................................................................. 8 Fire........................................................................................................................................ 8 Glaciers................................................................................................................................. 9 Rivers.................................................................................................................................... 10 Water Quality...................................................................................................................... 11 Natural Resources............................................................................................................................. 12 Amphibians.......................................................................................................................... 12 Bald Eagles........................................................................................................................... 13 Common Loons.................................................................................................................... 13 Bighorn Sheep..................................................................................................................... 14 Bison..................................................................................................................................... 15 Columbian Sharp-tailed Grouse.......................................................................................... 16 Great Gray Owls................................................................................................................... 16 Elk......................................................................................................................................... 17 Golden Eagles...................................................................................................................... 17 Gray Wolves......................................................................................................................... 18 Great Blue Herons............................................................................................................... 19 Greater Sage-grouse............................................................................................................ 19 Grizzly Bears......................................................................................................................... 20 Harlequin Ducks................................................................................................................... 21 Ospreys................................................................................................................................. 21 Moose................................................................................................................................... 22 Mule Deer............................................................................................................................ 23 Pronghorn............................................................................................................................ 24 Peregrine Falcons................................................................................................................. 25 Trumpeter Swans................................................................................................................. 25 Red Fox................................................................................................................................. 26 Sagebrush Steppe and High Elevation Vegetation........................................................... 27 Snake River Fine-spotted Cutthroat Trout......................................................................... 28 Whitebark Pine.................................................................................................................... 29 Cultural Resources............................................................................................................................ 30 Archeological Sites.............................................................................................................. 30 Historic Structures................................................................................................................ 31 Museum Collection and Archives....................................................................................... 32 Challenges........................................................................................................................................ 33 Aquatic Invasive Species...................................................................................................... 33 Chronic Wasting Disease..................................................................................................... 34 Integrated Pest Management............................................................................................. 34 Elk Reduction Program........................................................................................................ 35 Fish Passage.......................................................................................................................... 36 Human-Bear Interface......................................................................................................... 37 Invasive Plants.....................................................................................................................