NPS Photo Critters from the scientific classification order Arthropoda are the least documented in the park, even though they can be seen everywhere. These species lists are extremely incomplete, with the future hope of documenting thousands of different creatures with wings and/or multiple pairs of legs Go to the National Park Service IRMA Portal NPSpecies site to see a working list of insects, spiders, centipedes and millipedes in the park. Scientific classification abides by the following hierarchy:Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species Insects, spiders, centipedes and millipedes all belong to the kingdom Animalia and the phylum Arthropoda. However, they diverge as you move farther down the scientific classification chain. These four groups are part of different classes:
See the examples below to see how certain animals can be further classified.
Bees
Bees are part of the order Hymenoptera in the class Insecta. NPS Photo 
Dragonflies
Dragonflies are part of the order Odonta in the class Insecta. NPS Photo / Alicia Lafever 
Pinacate beetle (Eleodes)
Beetles are part of the order Coleoptera in the order Insecta. NPS Photo 
Crab Spider
Crab Spider (Misumena vatia) is a distinct species under the class Arachnida. NPS/Jason Bennett 
Monarch caterpillar
Monarch Caterpillar NPS Photo / Alicia Lafever 
Tent Caterpillars
These tent caterpillars will turn into moths from the family Lasiocampidae in the class Insecta. NPS Photo 
Species inventoried at the 2012 BioBlitz in Rocky Mountain National Park will hopefully be added to the park's species list in the future. An example of an unofficial insect species list from the order Plecoptera is found below. It was compiled from unpublished reports over several years and updated by park volunteer Dr. Burt Cushing and other sources. We are very grateful for all their assistance. This list is incomplete, but it gives you a taste of the sheer number of species found within one order of the class Insecta. Imagine how these numbers can grow exponentially when all species from other orders can be included. Stonefly (Order Plecoptera) from Rocky Mountain National Park
Updated 1/06/03 |
Last updated: May 5, 2018