History

• Natives lived in the sheltered alcoves of Mesa Verde's canyon walls for 700 years, and left in the late A.D. 1200s. President Theodore Roosevelt declared the region a national park on June 29, 1906, to preserve the ancient sites.
  
  

Nature

• Mesa Verde includes 8,500 acres of federally designated wilderness, and its southeast section is a designated research natural area. Local wildlife includes migratory mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, invertebrates, and amphibians. Some of the local plants and animals survive in the park only because of its protected status.
  
  

Climate

• The site's weather can go from snowstorms in the winter, to 90 degrees in the summer. The warm summer temperatures can lead to afternoon thunderstorms in July and August. June through September have cool evenings and warm to hot days.