Prairie Resources of National Park Units in the Great Plains

A survey of prairie in thirty-two National Park Service units (parks, monuments, historic sites, etc.) in the Great Plains was initiated in 1982. The Great Plains is defined as the area of grassland extending from the Canadian to the Mexican borders and from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains to western Indiana. The purpose of the survey was to identify National Park Service units with prairie and to determine the type, acreage, and condition of the prairies. Thirty-two National Park Service units within this area contain approximately 110,539 ha (273,142 acres) of prairie (approximately 1260 ha [3113 acres] of tallgrass, 108,627 ha [268,417 acres] of mixed-grass, and 653 ha [1614 acres] of shortgrass prairie). Twenty-seven units have at least some native prairie and ten units have restored prairie. For each unit, additional information on past management and adjacent land use was collected. Also, research conducted in each unit was identified. The thirty-two National Park Service units do not preserve a significant sample of the original Great Plains' prairie types.