Riding Mountain National Park is a national park in Manitoba, Canada. The park sits atop the Manitoba Escarpment. Consisting of a protected area 2,969 km2 (1,146 sq mi),[1] the forested parkland stands in sharp contrast to the surrounding prairie farmland. It was designated a National Park because it protects three different ecosystems that converge in the area; grasslands, upland boreal and eastern deciduous forests. The park is home to wolves, moose, elk, black bears, hundreds of bird species, countless insects and a captive bison herd.