West River
(Area - 15,623,854 ha)
Description
- West River is comprised of those areas west of the Missouri River in North Dakota and
South Dakota, including the Black Hills, as well as a small portion of northwestern
Nebraska. It is predominantly a grassland, with riparian woodlands along major waterways
and coniferous forest in the Black Hills and other isolated highlands in the west. This
area is a mixed grass prairie, but is considerably drier than either the Northern Mixed
Grass Prairie physiographic area to the east or the Nebraska Sandhills of the Central
Mixed Grass Prairie to the south. Because it was not recently glaciated, it lacks the
prairie potholes so important to wetland birds. Large areas in the western portion of this
area are highly dissected landscapes known as “badlands.”
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Conservation recommendations and needs - West River is one of the most lightly populated physiographic areas in the country. Its dryness makes it marginally suitable for most agriculture and most useful as lightly-stocked rangeland. Maintenance of a ranching economy here is compatible with the needs of grassland birds and should be the highest conservation priority. New crops adapted to arid conditions are becoming available, and the threat that much of the grassland will be plowed is increasing. PIF recommends acquisition of grassland easements over very extensive areas that will keep both cattle and birds in this system. Most of the higher elevation forested land is in public ownership and devoted mostly to non-destructive recreational activities.
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