Arthropods represent all trophic levels above primary producers, performing many of ecosystem functions, and thus provide a large pool from which to draw potential indicator taxa to monitor ecosystem condition. However, before they can be used as indicators, we must know which taxa are present, how they function in particular ecosystems, and how they respond to natural and anthropogenic disturbances. In July 1998, part of the road in Salt Creek caņon was closed, providing an opportunity to document riparian ecosystem response to elimination of vehicle perturbations. Since the closure, southeastern Utah has received signigicantly less precipitation than normal, overlaying the natural stress of drought on potential recovery from anthropogenic disturbance. Over 35,000 invertebrates have been collected to date; about 6200 samples have been sorted to order, with ants and beetles identified to genus or family/subfamily, respectively. Differences in the invertebrate communities are evident at the order level between caņon segments (open road, closed road and no road), months, and years. Open road and closed road communities are more similar, and show similar changes in abundance within orders over time, while the no road site communities exhibited a different pattern. Spatial and temporal dynamics are discussed in relation to caņon structure, road closure, drought and the value of invertebrates in assessing and monitoring ecosystem condition.