Prairies

The Topic:

Prairies

Easier - A prairie is a region of flat, gently sloping, or hilly land covered chiefly by tall grasses and not many trees. Pioneers who first saw the flat prairies of the American Middle West called them a 'sea of grass.'

Harder - Prairies, also called grasslands, are one of the main types of natural vegetation or biomes (Others include forest, desert shrub, and tundra). Prairies are areas where either low total annual rainfall (10-20 inches) or uneven seasonal rainfall favor grasses and herbaceous plants over the growth of trees. In some locales, soil conditions or geology also favor grasslands over other types of vegetation. Therefore, most prairies lie between desert shrub and forest lands. Prairies are found on every continent except Antarctica.

Prairies in North American extend from central Texas to southern Saskatchewan, including most of Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, South Dakota, and North Dakota, and parts of other nearby states and provinces. Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba are the 'Prairie Provinces' of Canada. Today, most of these prairie grasslands are farms and ranches. In many locations, overgrazing by livestock has killed most of the taller grasses.

Grasslands from the Evergreen Project, Missouri Botanical Gardens

http://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/grasslnd/main.htm

By exploring this virtual biome, you will learn about the grasslands types and the plants and animals found there.

Related Site:

2) Grasslands Biome http://mbgnet.mobot.org/pfg/diverse/biomes/grasslnd/index.htm

History of Prairies

http://www.eng.iastate.edu/explorer/topics/prairies/history.htm

Learn about the history of prairies back to time of creation of the planet.

Prairie Ecosystem

http://www.blackfootedferret.org/prairie.html#top

Here you find information about the North American prairie,one of the most endangered ecosystems on earth.

Related Websites:

2) North American Prairies http://www.runet.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/tempgrass/prairie.html

3) Temperate Grasslands

http://www.runet.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/tempgrass/tempgras.html

Tallgrass Prairie in Illinois by K.R. Robertson

http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/~kenr/tallgrass.html

Site introduces the tallgrass prairie of the eastern Great Plains of North America. It includes information on the basics of prairie biology and formation, the plants and animals, where to find tallgrass prairie in Illinois, prairie restoration, and more.

Related Websites:

2) Native Kansas Prairie http://history.cc.ukans.edu/heritage/prairie/prairie.html

3) Prairies in the Prairie State: Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie from Openlands Project and Illinois State Museum Society http://www.museum.state.il.us/exhibits/midewin/intro.html

4) Tallgrass (Missouri) by J.M. Vance http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/conmag/1996/mar/mr96van.html

5) Tallgrass Prairies http://people.uis.edu/braeb1/uisprairieproject/tallgrass_prairies.htm

6) Truth About Tallgrass from Tallgrass Ontario http://www.tallgrassontario.org/about_tallgrass.htm

After exploring and learning about prairies at the websites below, complete one or more of these projects.

Pest Or Endangered Species? Historically, many farmers and ranchers, and today some suburban dwellers view the prairie dog as a harmful pest that must be controlled in order to limit disease and protect the land. In addition to the prairie dog sites below, visit:

1) Praire Dogs from Cattlemen on the Hill http://hill.beef.org/policy/prairdogs.htm

2) Prairie Dog Debate Is Hardly Underground by B. Whitaker from Abilene Reporter News

http://www.reporternews.com/local/pdogs0525.html

3) Prarie Dogs -- The New Bambi? by J. Carmichel

http://www.outdoorlife.com/outdoor/hunting/article/0,13285,195064,00.html

4) Target Stores Off On Prairie Dogs by S. Truelsen http://www.fb.org/views/focus/fo99/fo0215.html

5) Varmint Hunters Could Save the Prairie Dog by by E. Quillen

http://www.custerguide.com/quillen/eqcols/19993302.htm

Then debate the protection of the prairie dog. Next, switch sides on the issue.

Create A 'Save The Prairies' Poster. After exploring several of the prairies sites including Grasslands, Nebraska Wildlife, and Friends of the Prairie Learning Center, create a poster that packs a message to its viewers. Include a slogan and make good use of color. You may want to include pictures or drawings of plants and animals.

Prairie Mural: Prehistory To The Future. After visiting many of the websites, making sure to include The Prairie Pothole Region and Prairies: Rediscovering a Fragile Frontier, choose a location and then plan and create a mural that begins with a prehistoric prairie (left side) and extends to the future. You may want to make a timeline as part of the planning process.

Complete A Prairies WebQuest. Follow or adapt the procedures found at one of the following webQuest sites:

1) Prairies Biome by K. King http://www.cesa10.k12.wi.us/webquest/Eco/prairies.htm

2) Prairie Challenge (Grade 4) by V. Mahoney

http://www.dg58.dupage.k12.il.us/Webquest/vanessa%20mahoney/vanessa%20mahoney

3) Sarah, Plain and Tall

http://schoolweb.missouri.edu/oregon-howell.k12.mo.us/brassfield/sarahwq/intro.html

4) Web Quest Prairie Museum (Grade 5) by D. Mentzel

http://d_mentzel.tripod.com/Prairie/

Plan A Prairie Restoration Plot. After visiting Native Prairie Management Guide, Prairie Parcel Restoration, and Outline of a Prairie Restoration make a complete plan for a prairie restoration project. Draw a layout and complete a landscape plan for your project. Develop a timeline for the project. Calculate the costs for the first year. Look for information about seeds, soils, and planting at Prairie Seed Mixes, Prairie Seed Source, and Prairie Frontier Wildflowers & Prairie Grass.

Life On The Prairie. Select a plant or animal that lives or lived on the prairie. Learn all about it, its history, and the effects of human interaction. Taking the perspective of your plant or animal, write a prairie short story about your life or some major event affecting you.

Websites For Kids By Kids

Prairie Index (Grade 6)

http://www.cesa10.k12.wi.us/Ecosystems/prairies/index.htm

This student-produced database includes animals, plants, book reviews, historical events, original stories, people, prairie types, and links for prairies.

More Prairie Websites

Background on the National Grasslands in the Northern Great Plains from the National Wildlife Federation

http://www.nwf.org/grasslands/northerngreatplainsbackground.html

The Northern Great Plains National Grasslands encompass more than 2.4 million acres of land in North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Nebraska. These lands, administered by the U.S. Forest Service, are federal public lands and belong to all Americans.

Related Website:

2) Manitoba's Tall-grass Prairie Preserve from The Green Lane, Environment Canada

http://www.mb.ec.gc.ca/nature/whp/df00s08.en.html

Friends of the Prairie Learning Center

http://www.tallgrass.org/

This center has information on the plants and animals of the prairie, as well as information on the restoration and preservation of prairies.

Grasslands (Prairies and Savannahs)

http://www.nearctica.com/ecology/habitats/prairie.htm

This site provides a good overview of grasslands and lots of links to other related prairie sites.

Iowa Prairie Network

http://www.IowaPrairieNetwork.org/

This site, provided by a grassroots organization dedicated to creating awareness of and preservation of our tallgrass prairie heritage, is designed to acquaint you with prairies and inform of their plight as one of North America's most endangered biomes.

Prairie Ecosystem

http://www.pnr-rpn.ec.gc.ca/nature/ecosystems/da00s01.en.html

This Canadian site provides an overview of the prairie ecosystem and the human induced stress factors that are causing or could potentially cause change (Advanced reading level).

North Dakota Prairie

http://www.greatplains.org/resource/1999/heritage/heritage.htm

Once defined by boundless prairie and a myriad of pothole wetlands, this land knows years of drought and years of abundant rainfall; searing dry heat and brutal subzero wind chills; the prairies can erupt in flame and then next season burst forth in a profusion of flowers.

Prairies: Rediscovering a Fragile Frontier by H. Youth

http://fonz.org/zoogoer/zg1999/28(3)prairie.htm

This aritcle from Zoogoer magazine provides an overview of the present plight of the prairie and its inhabitants.



Where Can Prairies Be found?

http://www.eng.iastate.edu/explorer/topics/prairies/where.htm

See a map where prairies could originally be found.

Animal & Plant Life of the Prairies

Black-footed Ferret

http://bb35.tpwd.state.tx.us/expltx/gulf/sbranch/ferret.htm

This site from Spring Branch Middle School describes the ferret and tells of efforts to reintroduce them in the wild.

Related Site:

2) Saving Species: The Black-Footed Ferret by K. Hess, Jr. from The Thoreau Institute

http://www.ti.org/bffshort.html

Declining Birds in Grassland Ecosystems

http://www.mesc.usgs.gov/pubs/online/grassbirds/birds_grassland_eco.html

Here you can read the report of a 1966 Department of the Interior Grassland Bird Working Group.

Nebraska Wildlife

http://www.ngpc.state.ne.us/wildlife/critters.html

Discover Nebraska wildlife from the coyote to the wild turkey to the raccoon.

Prairie Animals at EarthWorks

http://www.lx.org/ewprairie.html

This links-site connects to several websites for prairie animals.

Prairie Frontier Wildflowers & Prairie Grass from Prairie Frontier

http://www.prairiefrontier.com/

This seed company website provides information about native prairie plants, wildflowers, and planting techniques.

Prairie Raptors: A Landowner's Guide

http://www.mb.ec.gc.ca/nature/migratorybirds/raptors/dc17s00.en.html

An online manual on the raptors (hawks, owls) of Canada's prairies and other grasslands with information on their conservation.

Restoring Animal Population

http://www.teaching.ag.iastate.edu/aecl535/animals.htm

Information on restoring animal populations.

Story of the Prairie Chicken

http://www.tenan.vuurwerk.nl/reports/newton/prairie_chicken.html%0D

Here is a site based on the book 'The American Prairie Chicken' by Mary Adrian, and retold by a third grade class in Newton, Illinois.

Underdogs: Prairie Dogs at Home

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/98/burrow/index.html

(Note: Site is difficult to access, keep trying - its worth it!) Crawl down the tunnel and learn about the secret world beneath the plains where miles of complex underground burrows shelter prairie dogs from birth to death.

Other Prairie Dog Sites:

2) Conservation of the Prairie Dog Ecosystem

http://www.wildrockies.org/PredProj/4Campaigns/PDGE/PDhome.htm

3) Save the Prairie Dog? http://www.prairiedogs.org/

4) Saving the Black-tailed Prairie Dog and their Grasslands Habitat from National Wildlife Federation http://www.nationalwildlife.org/prairiedogs/index.html

Prairie Management and Restoration

Conservation of Canadian Prairie Grasslands (A Landowner's Guide by G.C. Trottier)

http://www.mb.ec.gc.ca/nature/whp/prgrass/df03s00.en.html

This guide promotes grassland conservation on private land (High reading level)

Native Prairie Management Guide by R. Hamilton

http://www.clinton.net/~hamfam/prairie/html/entire_guide.html

The guide provides various management techniques, presents historical factors related to management, general management guidelines, discusses grazing, mowing, burning, alien species management, introduction of native species, and adjacent land management.

Outline of a Prairie Restoration

http://www.netins.net/showcase/bluestem/restore.htm#top

Restoring a prairie is a long term project; whether it is a backyard or a thousand acres the time factor is really no different. The process can be broken into five steps: planning, preparation, planting, care, and enjoyment.

Prairie Parcel Restoration

http://www.ncrel.org/mands/FERMI/prairie/Prairie_Res/

This guide is designed for those individuals interested in restoring an area of land back to native prairie.

A Few Teacher Sites

Cebration of Prairie Life (Grade 4) by P. Healey, C. Zinke, R. Dagostino, V. DePriest, & C. Ferguson,

http://www.op97.k12.il.us/instruct/IArts/Prairie/prairie.html

Here is a multidisciplinary unit plan that encompasses social studies, language arts, science, math, music, dance, and visual art.

E Connection: Prairie Restoration

http://www.ktca.org/econnection/lessons/prairie.html

This restoration plan is designed for the colder climate of Minnesota. Grow your own prairie plot, and explore how these plants use the cold conditions to thrive.

Life on the Great Plains (Learning Guide 4, Crossroads)

http://edsitement.neh.gov/lessonplans/great_plains.html

In this four-part lesson, students examine the oncept of geographic region by exploring the history of the Great Plains.



Midewin Activities for Classrooms from Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie

http://www.openlands.org/midewin/table.htm

Activities were developed by the Chicago Academy of Science's Education Department with assistance from Chicago-area school teachers. There is one activity for each grade level (K-12) in three categories: Language Arts/Fine Arts, Social Studies, and Science/Math.

Prairie Restoration and Prairie Ecology by G.D. Latta

http://www.accessexcellence.org/AE/AEC/AEF/1996/latta_prairie.html

Here is a lesson plan for an extended activity involving hands-on tasks, inquiry lab, authentic assessment, group/cooperative learning, community outreach, and field study.

Smallville Prairie Development Project

http://www.ncrel.org/mands/FERMI/prairie/4Prairie/4sum.html (Grade 4-5)

http://www.ncrel.org/mands/FERMI/prairie/6prairie/6sumry.html (Grade 6-8)

http://www.ncrel.org/mands/FERMI/prairie/9prairie/9sum.html (Grade 9-10)

Here is an interesting project for school students on the mythical Smallville Prairie.



tallgrass mixed-grass shortgrass grasslands prairies quail

grouse pronghorn antelope bison grasshopper farming hawk

owl badger coyote restoration burning savanna

steppe black earth bluestem Indian grass blazing star coneflower

goldenrod sunflower milkweed cottonwood bird oak

osage orange cattail sedge veld plains Great Plains

invasive species overgrazing burrow raptor woodlot sod

sodbuster black-tailed prairie dog black-footed ferret butterflies native
ecosystem

badger controlled burn 'waving grass' blizzard alien plant windbreak

'ocean of grass' black eyed susan worm seed dispersal big bluestem wildflower

biome buffalo grass 'Great American Desert' snow steel plow biodiversity

Created by Annette Lamb and Larry Johnson, 8/99, Updated by Nancy Smith 2/02.