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North Great Plains. By: Carissa Cherry. Introduction. The Northern Great Plains span over 180 million acres, across 5 u.s. states and into Canada. This grassland is one of four of the only grasslands left in the world. Location Climate Plants Animals Other Organisms People
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North Great Plains By: Carissa Cherry
Introduction • The Northern Great Plains span over 180 million acres, across 5 u.s. states and into Canada. This grassland is one of four of the only grasslands left in the world. • Location • Climate • Plants • Animals • Other Organisms • People • Endangered Species • Environmental Concerns
Location • Located between Rio Grande, delta of the Mackenzie River interior lowland, Canadian Shield and east of the Rocky Mountains.
Climate • Northern portion only experience 10-20 days with temperatures above 90⁰F • Over the next couple of decades temperatures are expected to rise.
Plants • Grasses • Trees: Trumpet Creeper, Pawpaw, Sassafras, American Elm, Shining Sumac, Japanese Honeysuckle
Animals • 42 species of birds depend on the grasses. • Ex: Mountain plover, Long-Billed Curlew, Ferruginous hawk, McCowns • Bison • Black-footed Ferret • Pronghorns
Greater Sage-Grouse Black footed ferret Bison Pronghorn Mountain Plover
Coyote Black footed ferret Praire Dog Grass
Today black footed ferret habitats have been reduced to 20 locations. Their habitats range from 8 different states. • Prairie dogs make up 90% of the black footed ferrets diet. They are essential to the black footed ferret. Without them the chances of them going extinct greaten.
Other organisms • CowBird Parasitism is common in the Northern Great Plains.
Endangered Species • Piping Plover- arrive around mid-April and fly south by mid to late August. • Black footed ferret
People • Natives-Great grandchildren of early European settlers. • Ex: The switzers • People trying to restore the natural habitat of the plains.
Environmental Concerns • Wildlife needs the freedom to roam for survival and with new developments like roads fences and habitat clearing are restricting wildlife’s ability to adapt.
Miscellaneous/Unique features • While mapping and exploring the west, Lewis and Clark came across the Northern Great Plains. Awestruck at the scenery before him, Captain Lewis noted "immence herds of Buffalo deer Elk and Antelopes which we saw in every direction feeding on the hills and plains."
Conclusion • Located in five states and Canada this grassland need to be conserved. • Prairie Dogs are needed to protect Black Footed Ferrets from going extinct. • Wildlife is unique to the region.
5 review questions • How many different locations can black footed ferrets habitats be found? • What tribe first settled in the North Great Plains? • What month does the endangered piper plover arrive in the North Great Plains? • What month does it leave? • How many different species of birds are there in the North Great plains?
Work cited page http://www.wcs.org/saving-wild-places/north-america/great-plains.aspx http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/impacts-adaptation/greatplains.html http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/243562/Great-Plains http://worldwildlife.org/places/northern-great-plains http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/birds/pipingplover/