Greater Rockies & Mountain Forests bioregion

The bioregion’s land area is provided in units of 1,000 hectares. The conservation target is the combined Global Safety Net (GSN1) areas for the component ecoregions. The protection level indicates the percentage of the GSN goal that is currently protected on a scale of 0-10. N/A means data is not available at this time.

  • 70,046
    Total Land Area (1000 ha)
  • 4
    Number of Ecoregions
  • 59%
    Protection Target
  • 3
    Protection Level

The Greater Rockies bioregion is the backbone of the American West subrealm within Northern America. It extends northward from Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming all the way to Lake Williston in British Columbia. It is covered predominately by temperate conifer forests but includes the foothill grasslands covering the floor of the many valleys that are intertwined with the adjacent mountains. The bioregion includes four ecoregions – Central British Columbia Mountain Forests (350), Northern Rockies Conifer Forests (361), South Central Rockies Forests (367), Montana Valley and Foothill Grasslands (394) – and encompasses the northern portion of the Lakes District in British Columbia as well as Glacier National Park of Canada. The total area of this bioregion is approximately 70 million hectares.

The Greater Rockies & Mountain Forests bioregion is part of the American West subrealm and is made up of four ecoregions: (1) Central British Columbia Mountain Forests (2) Northern Rockies Conifer Forests (3) South Central Rockies Forests (4) Montana Valley and Foothill Grasslands. 

One Earth is dedicated to mobilizing philanthropic capital to protect the ecosystems and peoples of Northern America. Visit the Project Marketplace to explore projects in this realm that need your support. Learn more about each of the Greater Rockies & Mountain Forests ecoregions below.

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