Look around the summit of Colorado's many high peaks, and you'll eventually see the pint-sized American pika – a powerfully resilient resident of the highest altitudes.
A relative of rabbits, the pika prefers the cold. It can overheat on a 78 degree day. With a warming climate, the pika has now mostly disappeared below 8 thousand feet. Up on those mountain tops, unlike another alpine mammal, the marmot, the pika does not hibernate through the winter. Instead, it stays awake and lives off a store of grasses and flowers – 65 pounds worth packed away by each potato-sized pika every summer. As if a human filled a 20 thousand pound pantry with 5 thousand trips to the grocery store in one summer.
Step aside, Peter Piper, and behold the plucky pika, parked upon a peak, who packed a whole lot more than peck.
About Colorado Postcards
Colorado Postcards are snapshots of our colorful state in sound. They give brief insights into our people and places, our flora and fauna, and our past and present, from every corner of Colorado.
