The Flint Hills, historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills,[1] are a region in eastern Kansas and north-central Oklahoma named for the abundant residual flint eroded from the bedrock that lies near or at the surface. It consists of a band of hills stretching from Kansas to Oklahoma, extending from Marshall and Washington Counties in the north to Cowley County, Kansas and Kay and Osage Counties in Oklahoma in the south, to Geary and Shawnee Counties west to east.[2] Oklahomans generally refer to the same geologic formation as the Osage Hills or "the Osage."
The Flint Hills Ecoregion is designated as a distinct region because it has the densest coverage of intact tallgrass prairie in North America. Due to its rocky soil, the early settlers were unable to plow the area, resulting in the prevalence of cattle ranches as opposed to the crop land more typical of the Great Plains. These ranches rely on annual controlled burns conducted by ranchers every spring to renew the prairie grasses for cattle to graze.
Konza Prairie Preserve, a tallgrass prairie in the Flint HillsA walking trail in the Konza Prairie shows the height of the grasses in the fall.
Explorer Zebulon Pike first coined the name the Flint Hills in 1806 when he entered into his journal, "passed very ruff flint hills". The underlying bedrock of the hills is a flinty limestone. The largest town in the area is Manhattan, Kansas, and the hills can be accessed from the Flint Hills Scenic Byway, which passes through the region.
GeologyEdit
The rocks exposed in the Flint Hills were laid down about 250 million years ago during the Permian Period. During this time, much of the Midwest, including Kansas and Oklahoma, was covered with shallow seas. As a result, much of the Flint Hills is composed of limestone and shale, with plentiful fossils of prehistoric sea creatures. The most notable layer of chert-bearing limestone is the Florence Limestone Member, which is approximately 45-foot thick (14 m). Numerous roadcuts of the Florence Member are prominent along Interstate 70 in Riley County, Kansas. Unlike the Pennsylvanian limestones to the east, however, many of the limestones in the Flint Hills contain several bands of chert or flint. Because chert is much less soluble than the limestone surrounding it, the weathering of the limestone has left behind a clay soil with abundant chert gravel. Most of the hilltops in the region are capped with this chert gravel.
Due to shallow outcroppings of limestone and chert that lay just underneath the soil surface, corn and wheat farming were not practical over much of the area since plowing the land wasn't feasible. For this reason, cattle ranching became the main agricultural activity in the region.
Never having been ploughed over and sparsely developed, the Flint Hills represent the last expanse of intact tallgrass prairie in the nation.[4] They present the best opportunity for sustained preservation of this unique habitat that once covered the vast Great Plains. Most of the plains, such as the Central tall grasslands to the north, have better soil than the Flint Hills and a richer plant cover, but have almost entirely been converted to farmland.[2]
Landscape of Flint Hills
Tallgrass prairie is renewed by fire and grazing, which also keeps back the growth of trees and shrubs. Prominent grass species are big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), and Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans).
Animals native to the Flint Hills include the American bison, which once grazed the area by the millions and were almost entirely exterminated, but have now been reintroduced. The elk that once roamed the region are gone.
In mathematics, the Flint Hills series (which is named after the region) is an infinite series for which it is unknown whether or not the series converges. The convergence of the Flint Hills series is related to how irrational the number π is. [10][11]
^U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Flint Hills
^ abKlinkenborg, Verlyn (April 2007). . National Geographic. Archived from the original on February 26, 2018. Retrieved March 27, 2007.
^"Flint Hills". Peakbagger.com. November 1, 2004. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
^Berger, Joel; Beckmann, Jon (February 19, 2020). "Animals large and small once covered North America's prairies – and in some places, they could again". The Conversation. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
^"Flint Hills tall grasslands". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved April 17, 2007.
^"Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve". U.S. National Park Service. July 7, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
^. The Nature Conservancy. April 11, 2014. Archived from the original on May 1, 2010. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
^. Nature.org. April 11, 2014. Archived from the original on February 9, 2009. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
^Mathematics StackExchange https://math.stackexchange.com/questions/3786042/flint-hills-series-sum-n-1-infty-frac1n3-sin2-n {{citation}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
^"On convergence of the Flint Hills series" by Max A. Alekseyev (PDF) https://arxiv.org/pdf/1104.5100.pdf {{citation}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
External linksEdit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Flint Hills.
Flint Hills Regional Council
Flint Hills publications at KGI Online Library State Library of Kansas
Flint Hills Map (pdf) - Flint Hills Discovery Center
Photos
October 21, 2023
flint, hills, historically, known, bluestem, pastures, blue, stem, hills, region, eastern, kansas, north, central, oklahoma, named, abundant, residual, flint, eroded, from, bedrock, that, lies, near, surface, consists, band, hills, stretching, from, kansas, ok. The Flint Hills historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills 1 are a region in eastern Kansas and north central Oklahoma named for the abundant residual flint eroded from the bedrock that lies near or at the surface It consists of a band of hills stretching from Kansas to Oklahoma extending from Marshall and Washington Counties in the north to Cowley County Kansas and Kay and Osage Counties in Oklahoma in the south to Geary and Shawnee Counties west to east 2 Oklahomans generally refer to the same geologic formation as the Osage Hills or the Osage Flint HillsMap of the Flint Hills ecoregionLocationManhattan Kansas largest Great Plains United StatesCoordinates37 17 00 N 96 40 31 W 37 28333 N 96 67528 W 37 28333 96 67528Length157 mi 253 km Width93 mi 150 km Area9 936 sq mi 25 730 km2 Elevation1 680 ft 512 m WebsiteFlint Hills WebsiteThe Flint Hills Ecoregion is designated as a distinct region because it has the densest coverage of intact tallgrass prairie in North America Due to its rocky soil the early settlers were unable to plow the area resulting in the prevalence of cattle ranches as opposed to the crop land more typical of the Great Plains These ranches rely on annual controlled burns conducted by ranchers every spring to renew the prairie grasses for cattle to graze The Flint Hills Discovery Center a science and history museum focusing on the Flint Hills opened in Manhattan Kansas in April 2012 Contents 1 Description 2 Geology 3 Environment 4 In popular culture 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksDescription Edit nbsp Konza Prairie Preserve a tallgrass prairie in the Flint Hills nbsp A walking trail in the Konza Prairie shows the height of the grasses in the fall Explorer Zebulon Pike first coined the name the Flint Hills in 1806 when he entered into his journal passed very ruff flint hills The underlying bedrock of the hills is a flinty limestone The largest town in the area is Manhattan Kansas and the hills can be accessed from the Flint Hills Scenic Byway which passes through the region Geology EditThe rocks exposed in the Flint Hills were laid down about 250 million years ago during the Permian Period During this time much of the Midwest including Kansas and Oklahoma was covered with shallow seas As a result much of the Flint Hills is composed of limestone and shale with plentiful fossils of prehistoric sea creatures The most notable layer of chert bearing limestone is the Florence Limestone Member which is approximately 45 foot thick 14 m Numerous roadcuts of the Florence Member are prominent along Interstate 70 in Riley County Kansas Unlike the Pennsylvanian limestones to the east however many of the limestones in the Flint Hills contain several bands of chert or flint Because chert is much less soluble than the limestone surrounding it the weathering of the limestone has left behind a clay soil with abundant chert gravel Most of the hilltops in the region are capped with this chert gravel The highest point in the Flint Hills is Butler County High Point with an elevation of 1680 ft 512 m 3 Environment EditDue to shallow outcroppings of limestone and chert that lay just underneath the soil surface corn and wheat farming were not practical over much of the area since plowing the land wasn t feasible For this reason cattle ranching became the main agricultural activity in the region Never having been ploughed over and sparsely developed the Flint Hills represent the last expanse of intact tallgrass prairie in the nation 4 They present the best opportunity for sustained preservation of this unique habitat that once covered the vast Great Plains Most of the plains such as the Central tall grasslands to the north have better soil than the Flint Hills and a richer plant cover but have almost entirely been converted to farmland 2 nbsp Landscape of Flint HillsTallgrass prairie is renewed by fire and grazing which also keeps back the growth of trees and shrubs Prominent grass species are big bluestem Andropogon gerardi switchgrass Panicum virgatum and Indian grass Sorghastrum nutans Animals native to the Flint Hills include the American bison which once grazed the area by the millions and were almost entirely exterminated but have now been reintroduced The elk that once roamed the region are gone The United States Environmental Protection Agency and the World Wildlife Fund have designated the Flint Hills as an ecoregion distinct from other grasslands of the Great Plains 5 6 Four tallgrass prairie preserves are located in the Flint Hills The largest of these the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in the Osage Hills near Pawhuska Oklahoma boasts a large population of bison and is an important refuge for other wildlife such as the greater prairie chicken Tympanuchus cupido The other preserves in Kansas are the 17 square mile 44 km2 Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in northern Chase County near Strong City 7 8 the Flint Hills Tallgrass Prairie Preserve east of Cassoday the Prairie Chicken Capital of the World 9 and the Konza Prairie which is managed as a tallgrass prairie biological research station by Kansas State University and is located near Manhattan In popular culture EditWilliam Least Heat Moon wrote a tribute to the Flint Hills and the Kansans who live there in his book PrairyErth In mathematics the Flint Hills series which is named after the region is an infinite series for which it is unknown whether or not the series converges The convergence of the Flint Hills series is related to how irrational the number p is 10 11 See also EditJacobs Creek flood List of ecoregions in the United States WWF List of protected grasslands of North AmericaReferences Edit U S Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System Flint Hills a b Klinkenborg Verlyn April 2007 Splendor of the Grass The Prairie s Grip is Unbroken in the Flint Hills of Kansas National Geographic Archived from the original on February 26 2018 Retrieved March 27 2007 Flint Hills Peakbagger com November 1 2004 Retrieved July 24 2014 Berger Joel Beckmann Jon February 19 2020 Animals large and small once covered North America s prairies and in some places they could again The Conversation Retrieved December 16 2020 Ecoregion Maps and GIS Resources United States Environmental Protection Agency Retrieved April 10 2008 Flint Hills tall grasslands Terrestrial Ecoregions World Wildlife Fund Retrieved April 17 2007 Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve U S National Park Service July 7 2014 Retrieved July 24 2014 Kansas Nature Conservation Environment Issues The Nature Conservancy April 11 2014 Archived from the original on May 1 2010 Retrieved July 24 2014 Kansas Nature Conservation Environment Issues The Nature Conservancy Nature org April 11 2014 Archived from the original on February 9 2009 Retrieved July 24 2014 Mathematics StackExchange https math stackexchange com questions 3786042 flint hills series sum n 1 infty frac1n3 sin2 n a href Template Citation html title Template Citation citation a Missing or empty title help On convergence of the Flint Hills series by Max A Alekseyev PDF https arxiv org pdf 1104 5100 pdf a href Template Citation html title Template Citation citation a Missing or empty title help External links Edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Flint Hills Flint Hills Regional Council Flint Hills resources Flint Hills publications at KGI Online Library State Library of KansasMapsFlint Hills Map pdf Kansas Geological Survey University of Kansas Flint Hills Map pdf Flint Hills Discovery CenterPhotosNational Geographic photo gallery Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Flint Hills amp oldid 1171460101, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
