Texas blackland prairies
Encyclopedia
The Texas Blackland Prairies are a temperate grassland
ecoregion
located in Texas
that runs roughly from the Red River in North Texas
to San Antonio in the south.
grasslands southeast of the main blackland prairie belt; both the main belt and the islands extend northeast/southwest. It is the home to many different eco-regional organisms
The main belt consists of oaklands and savannas and runs from just south of the Red River on the Texas-Oklahoma
border through the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area and into southwestern Texas. The Central forest-grasslands transition
lies to the north and northwest, and the Edwards Plateau savanna
and the Tamaulipan mezquital
the southwest.
The larger of the two islands is the Fayette Prairie, encompassing 17000 km² (6,563.7 sq mi), and the smaller is the San Antonio Prairie of 7000 km² (2,702.7 sq mi). The two islands are separated from the main belt by the oak woodlands of the East Central Texas forests
, which surround the islands on all sides but the northeast, where the Fayette Prairie meets the Piney Woods.
s and Plains Bison
. Large fires would frequently sweep the area, clearing shrub
s and stimulating forb
s and grass
es. Large herds of bison also grazed on the grasses.
being converted to crop production, leaving less than one percent remaining (and some groups estimate less than 0.5% to less than 0.1% remaining) and making the tallgrass the most-endangered large ecosystem in North America
.
Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands is a terrestrial biome whose predominant vegetation consists of grasses and/or shrubs. The climate is temperate and semi-arid to semi-humid....
ecoregion
Ecoregion
An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...
located in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
that runs roughly from the Red River in North Texas
North Texas
North Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area forming the central-northeastern section of the U.S. state of Texas. North Texas is generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, and north of Waco...
to San Antonio in the south.
Setting
The Texas Blackland Prairies ecoregion covers an area of 50300 km² (19,420.9 sq mi), consisting of a main belt of 43000 km² (16,602.4 sq mi) and two islands of tallgrass prairieTallgrass prairie
The tallgrass prairie is an ecosystem native to central North America, with fire as its primary periodic disturbance. In the past, tallgrass prairies covered a large portion of the American Midwest, just east of the Great Plains, and portions of the Canadian Prairies. They flourished in areas with...
grasslands southeast of the main blackland prairie belt; both the main belt and the islands extend northeast/southwest. It is the home to many different eco-regional organisms
The main belt consists of oaklands and savannas and runs from just south of the Red River on the Texas-Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
border through the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area and into southwestern Texas. The Central forest-grasslands transition
Central forest-grasslands transition
The Central forest-grasslands transition are a prairie ecoregion of the central United States, part of the North American Great Plains.-Setting:...
lies to the north and northwest, and the Edwards Plateau savanna
Edwards Plateau
The Edwards Plateau is a region of west-central Texas which is bounded by the Balcones Fault to the south and east, the Llano Uplift and the Llano Estacado to the north, and the Pecos River and Chihuahuan Desert to the west. San Angelo, Austin, San Antonio and Del Rio roughly outline the area...
and the Tamaulipan mezquital
Tamaulipan mezquital
The Tamaulipan mezquital ecoregion, in the deserts and xeric shrublands biome, is located in the southern United States and northeastern Mexico...
the southwest.
The larger of the two islands is the Fayette Prairie, encompassing 17000 km² (6,563.7 sq mi), and the smaller is the San Antonio Prairie of 7000 km² (2,702.7 sq mi). The two islands are separated from the main belt by the oak woodlands of the East Central Texas forests
East Central Texas forests
The East Central Texas forests is a small temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion almost entirely within the state of Texas, United States...
, which surround the islands on all sides but the northeast, where the Fayette Prairie meets the Piney Woods.
Formation
This area was shaped by frequent wildfireWildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
s and Plains Bison
Plains Bison
The Plains Bison or Common bison is one of two subspecies/ecotypes of the American Bison, the other being the Wood Bison . Furthermore, it has been suggested that the Plains Bison consists of a northern and a southern subspecies, bringing the total to three...
. Large fires would frequently sweep the area, clearing shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s and stimulating forb
Forb
A forb is a herbaceous flowering plant that is not a graminoid . The term is used in biology and in vegetation ecology, especially in relation to grasslands and understory.-Etymology:...
s and grass
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
es. Large herds of bison also grazed on the grasses.
Conservation
Because of the soil and climate, this ecoregion is ideally suited to crop agriculture. This has led to most of the Blackland Prairie ecosystemEcosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
being converted to crop production, leaving less than one percent remaining (and some groups estimate less than 0.5% to less than 0.1% remaining) and making the tallgrass the most-endangered large ecosystem in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.