KnowKi

Learn the wildlife of the U.S. national parks

Learn the wildlife of Rocky Mountain National Park

CO

1,790 species have research-grade observations inside Rocky Mountain National Park on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, so you know what you're looking at before you go.

Start this trip in KnowKi →
Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. Steller's Jay Cyanocitta stelleri1,583
  2. Clark's Nutcracker Nucifraga columbiana719
  3. Black-billed Magpie Pica hudsonia705
  4. Mallard Anas platyrhynchos559
  5. Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis462
  6. Canada Jay Perisoreus canadensis432
  7. Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo406
  8. Mountain Chickadee Poecile gambeli385
  9. White-tailed Ptarmigan Lagopus leucura367
  10. Dusky Grouse Dendragapus obscurus354

Plants

  1. Fireweed Chamaenerion angustifolium1,127
  2. Lanceleaf Stonecrop Sedum lanceolatum1,104
  3. Blue columbine Aquilegia coerulea923
  4. Quaking aspen Populus tremuloides803
  5. Ross' Avens Geum rossii745
  6. Creeping mahonia Berberis repens677
  7. Moss Campion Silene acaulis646
  8. Whipple's penstemon Penstemon whippleanus636
  9. Common juniper Juniperus communis628
  10. American bistort Bistorta bistortoides592

Mammals

  1. Wapiti Cervus canadensis3,781
  2. Common Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel Callospermophilus lateralis2,659
  3. Yellow-bellied Marmot Marmota flaviventris2,194
  4. Moose Alces alces1,883
  5. Mule Deer Odocoileus hemionus1,454
  6. American Pika Ochotona princeps1,195
  7. Bighorn Sheep Ovis canadensis374
  8. Wyoming Ground Squirrel Urocitellus elegans222
  9. Least Chipmunk Neotamias minimus216
  10. Coyote Canis latrans212

Insects

  1. Rocky Mountain Parnassian Parnassius smintheus355
  2. Weidemeyer's Admiral Limenitis weidemeyerii224
  3. Police Car Moth Gnophaela vermiculata216
  4. Spotted Tussock Moth Lophocampa maculata212
  5. Hoary Comma Polygonia gracilis196
  6. White-spotted Sawyer Monochamus scutellatus184
  7. Blue Fungus Beetle Cypherotylus californicus118
  8. Greenish Blue Icaricia saepiolus110
  9. Arctic Blue Agriades glandon108
  10. Western Tiger Swallowtail Papilio rutulus96

Fish

  1. Rocky Mountain Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus virginalis453
  2. Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis338
  3. Brown Trout Salmo trutta47
  4. Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss16

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

Start this trip in KnowKi →

Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. KnowKi is not affiliated with the National Park Service. Free, with no ads, no account and no purchases.