Central forest–grasslands transition

<h2 id="setting">Setting</h2>
<p>This is a large area covering 407,000 square kilometres (157,000 sq mi) from northern <a href="/facts/Illinois/MuPb1Ctn">Illinois</a> through most of <a href="/facts/Missouri/wQ3VAb99">Missouri</a>, eastern <a href="/facts/Kansas/koenIXmE">Kansas</a>, <a href="/facts/Oklahoma/fK28L1a4">Oklahoma</a> and into <a href="/facts/Texas/B987WHF0">Texas</a>. This area was traditionally a mixture of woodland and <a href="/facts/Tall_grass_prairie/zgnU4FJc">tall grass prairie</a>, which as the soil consists of highly fertile <a href="/facts/Mollisols/lxyTVyAR">mollisols</a>, most of the area has been converted to farmland. Rainfall varies from 600 to 1040 mm per year and the area is vulnerable to drought and fire. Along with the <a href="/facts/Upper_Midwest_forest%E2%80%93savanna_transition/Dbsj98Rt">Upper Midwest forest–savanna transition</a> this ecoregion separates the <a href="/facts/Central_U.S._hardwood_forests/1VYY5HrK">Central U.S. hardwood forests</a> to the east from the largely treeless <a href="/facts/Central_and_Southern_mixed_grasslands/KNxRkNlA">Central and Southern mixed grasslands</a> and <a href="/facts/Central_tall_grasslands/Vez70Nwa">Central tall grasslands</a> to the west.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a>
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<h2 id="fauna">Fauna</h2>
<p>This ecoregion is rich in reptiles, birds and insects. Birds of the area include the <a href="/facts/Greater_prairie_chicken/TGog5Ked">greater prairie chicken</a>. Reptiles include the <a href="/facts/Agkistrodon_contortrix_phaeogaster/C38az9lJ">Osage copperhead snake</a>.
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<h2 id="threats-and-preservation">Threats and preservation</h2>
<p>The area has almost entirely been converted to agriculture, particularly planting corn and soybeans. Remaining blocks of intact habitat are small and include the <a href="/facts/Emiquon_National_Wildlife_Refuge/cMPmHuDF">Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge</a> an important stopover for migrating birds located across the <a href="/facts/Illinois_River/tDN7q9sx">Illinois River</a> from the town of <a href="/facts/Havana,_Illinois/uuXqyDfA">Havana</a> in western Illinois. Other spots of unspoilt prairie occur in <a href="/facts/Goose_Lake_Prairie_State_Natural_Area/1gXgHIeW">Goose Lake Prairie State Natural Area</a>, <a href="/facts/Midewin_National_Tallgrass_Prairie/bqodGNGk">Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie</a> and the <a href="/facts/Kankakee_Outwash_Plain/2h4tCcSD">Kankakee Outwash Plain</a> in Illinois; <a href="/facts/Indiana_Dunes_National_Lakeshore/0AVGCuuh">Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore</a> in northwest Indiana; the <a href="/facts/Cross_Timbers/JFXewIjM">Cross Timbers</a> in southern Kansas and central Oklahoma; and the <a href="/facts/Osage_Plains/fQlgLHov">Osage Plains</a> in the south of the ecoregion. However these are all highly fragmented although there are many protected areas in the ecoregion, for example, <a href="/facts/Prairie_State_Park/wERbj20C">Prairie State Park</a> in Missouri, and there are also several small tall grass prairie reservations in <a href="/facts/Cook_County/ARqrl8At">Cook County</a>, <a href="/facts/Illinois/MuPb1Ctn">Illinois</a>, including the <a href="/facts/National_Natural_Landmark/Vb9c9q5l">National Natural Landmark</a>, <a href="/facts/Gensburg-Markham_Prairie/sNU8h7oV">Gensburg-Markham Prairie</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a>
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<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Oak_savanna/WlVg9FmI">Oak savanna</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/List_of_ecoregions_in_the_United_States_(WWF)/DStWDw5V">List of ecoregions in the United States (WWF)</a></li></ul>

<h2 id="external-links">External links</h2>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/151036/">Central forest-grasslands transition</a>, <i>Encyclopedia of Earth</i></li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1"><p>"Central forest-grasslands transition". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund. <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/na0804" target="_blank">https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/na0804</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:2"><p>[Chicago Wilderness Magazine, Summer 2000 http://www.chicagowildernessmag.org/issues/summer2000/gensburg.html] <a href="http://www.chicagowildernessmag.org/issues/summer2000/gensburg.html" target="_blank">http://www.chicagowildernessmag.org/issues/summer2000/gensburg.html</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
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Central forest–grasslands transition open-in-new

Central forest–grasslands transition