LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY > MACRO AND CLOSE-UPS — WORLD > Edith’s Checkerspot Butterfly (Glacier National Park)
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Edith’s Checkerspot butterfly inhabits western North America and the Rocky Mountains from Baja California through British Columbia. The populations in the far south reaches of its distribution are going extinct due to recent hotter and drier climate change. This Edith’s Checkerspot was found clinging to an alpine flower near to the top of Dawson’s Pass at the Continental Divide in the Two Medicine Area of Glacier National Park.
The area of Two Medicine within Glacier National Park is very important to the Blackfeet Nation. Sinopah Mountain provides a dramatic skyline that is reflected in Pray Lake on still days. Further on, Two Medicine Lake and Upper Two Medicine Lake as well as several beautiful waterfalls can be visited. Dawson Pass and Pitamakan Pass provide exceptional panoramic views of the surrounding mountains.
Waterton – Glacier International Peace Park straddles the USA – Canadian border at Montana, USA, and Alberta, Canada, and is a World Heritage Site. Glacier National Park features stunning turquoise glacial lakes and sculpted mountain peaks of unique magenta, blue, green and yellow rock. The valleys and mountain slopes are abundant with wildflowers such as Indian Paintbrush, Glacier Lily, Beargrass and Monkeyflower. The area also supports many large animals such as grizzly bears, moose, bighorn sheep, elk, mountain goats and wolves.
In 1850 Glacier National Park had 150 glaciers, but due to global warming, only 25 glaciers remain today. Scientific projections predict that all of Glacier’s glaciers could disappear somewhere between 2030 and roughly 2200, depending upon what actions we take or fail to take now.