Flint Hills | Chert crest Limestone shale Native prairie grassland |
A
narrow band of low rolling hills known as the Flint Hills traverses north and south cutting through eastern Kansas. Ranging from 60 to 100 miles wide, this ecosystem was shaped by erosion of Permian-age limestone and shale. The geology of this area also contains numerous bands of chert, or flint. Flint is much less soluble than the surrounding limestone, so weathering of the limestone has left behind a soil full of flinty gravel. Most of the hilltops in this region are covered with this flinty gravel making plowing difficult, thus the land is suitable to ranching not farming. This characteristic is responsible for the surviving native prairie grassland found in the Flint Hills.
“We must some-how take a wider view, look at the whole landscape, really see it, and describe what's going on there.” - Annie Dillard
