Shrubby cinquefoil Potentilla fruticosa is a woody shrub native to the Rocky Mountains. In 2001, we initiated studies in the Jemez Mountains, New Mexico on P. fruticosa as a potential nectar source for butterflies. Little is known about its ecology nor is it a documented butterfly nectar plant. Our objectives were to: (1) document whether adult butterflies nectar on P. fruticosa (2) determine whether elk browsing affects flower availability (3) and determine P. fruticosa flower nectar quantity and carbohydrate quality. In 2002, we observed over 100 butterflies, belonging to five species, nectaring on P. fruticosa and spending up to 30% of their total foraging time on its flowers compared to adjacent nectar species. We also found elk to browse upon P. fruticosa and significantly reduce flower abundance. In counts of P. fruticosa flowers per plant within 100m² of two paired 3600m² elk exlosure and reference areas, we observed a mean(se) total of 278(39.6) and 436(92.2) flowers/plant inside vs. 0.26(0.10) and 0.22(0.12) flowers/plant outside exclosures. When compared with 2001 and 2003, butterfly abundance and richness were significantly lower in 2002 with a mean(se) total of 8(3.46) butterflies (7 species) inside vs. 3.8(0.66) butterflies (8 species) outside each exclosure (n=5 pairs). However, numbers did not significantly differ between treatments within all three years. Our data suggest that browsing by high densities of elk (10 elk/km²) potentially limits the availability of P. fruticosa flowers for butterflies. We are currently documenting P. fruticosa nectar quantity and quality for adult butterflies.