Buffalo Gap National Grassland is a
National Grassland
A national grassland is an area of protected and managed federal lands in the United States authorized by Title III of the Bankhead–Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937. For administrative purposes, they are essentially identical to national forests ...
located primarily in southwestern
South Dakota
South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...
, United States. It is also the second largest National Grassland, after
Little Missouri National Grassland
Little Missouri National Grassland is a National Grassland located in western North Dakota, USA. At , it is the largest grassland in the country. Enclaved within its borders is Theodore Roosevelt National Park, which is managed by the National Pa ...
in North Dakota. Characteristics of the grasslands include mixed
prairie
Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
and chalky
badlands
Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, m ...
. The grassland is managed by the
U.S. Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...
and is a division of
Nebraska National Forest
The Nebraska National Forest is a United States National Forest located within the U.S. state of Nebraska. The total area of the national forest is 141,864 acres, or 222 sq miles (574 km2). The forest is managed by the U.S. Forest Service's ...
. In descending order of land area it is located in parts of
Fall River
Fall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The City of Fall River's population was 94,000 at the 2020 United States Census, making it the tenth-largest city in the state.
Located along the eastern shore of Mount H ...
,
Pennington,
Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
Places
Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Qu ...
, and
Custer
George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars.
Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...
counties.
Buffalo Gap National Grassland is managed by the Forest Service together with the
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...
and
Samuel R. McKelvie National Forests and the
Fort Pierre and
Oglala
The Oglala (pronounced , meaning "to scatter one's own" in Lakota language) are one of the seven subtribes of the Lakota people who, along with the Dakota, make up the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (Seven Council Fires). A majority of the Oglala live o ...
National Grasslands from common offices in
Chadron, Nebraska. There are local ranger district offices located in
Hot Springs
A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...
and
Wall
A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including:
* Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the supe ...
. It also surrounds
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park ( lkt, Makȟóšiča) is an American national park located in southwestern South Dakota. The park protects of sharply eroded buttes and pinnacles, along with the largest undisturbed mixed grass prairie in the United State ...
and
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
The Minuteman Missile National Historic Site is an American national historic site established in 1999 near Wall, South Dakota to illustrate the history and significance of the Cold War, the arms race, and intercontinental ballistic missile ...
.
In what is known as the Conata Basin region of the grassland, the most successful
Black-footed ferret reintroduction program undertaken by the
federal government
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...
, has established a small but sustainable population of these previously extirpated mammals.
In 2010, South Dakota Senator
Tim Johnson introduced the Tony Dean Cheyenne River Valley Conservation Act of 2010, a bill that would designate over of the National Grassland as protected wilderness. The act would allow the continuation of grazing and hunting on the land and would create the first national grassland wilderness in the country.
In Jan. 2013,
Charmaine White Face raised concerns about
radiation exposure of
South Dakota Army National Guard soldiers in the Buffalo Gap National Grassland.
National Grasslands Visitor Center
The National Grasslands Visitor Center in
Wall, South Dakota
Wall ( Lakota: ''Makȟóšiča Aglágla Otȟuŋwahe'', "Town alongside the Badlands") is a town in Pennington County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 699 at the 2020 census.
History
Wall was platted in 1907 when the Chicago an ...
is part of the Buffalo Gap National Grassland – Wall Ranger District. The center features exhibits about grassland wildlife and plants, grazing management and the history of the
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
. There is also a theater with a video about the grasslands, restrooms and a gift shop.
References
External links
*
Buffalo Gap National Grassland– Nebraska National Forests and Grasslands
National Grasslands Visitor Center
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Grasslands of the North American Great Plains
National Grasslands of the United States
Protected areas of Fall River County, South Dakota
Protected areas of Pennington County, South Dakota
Protected areas of Jackson County, South Dakota
Protected areas of Custer County, South Dakota
Grasslands of South Dakota
Protected areas established in 1960
1960 establishments in South Dakota