Badlands National Park
Located in South Dakota, Badlands National Park features stunning and rare landscapes created from sharply eroded buttes, carved spires and delicate pinnacles. Millions of years of water and wind erosion washed away soft sediment, leaving harder surfaces of colorful rock and volcanic ash. The terrain preserved the largest fossil beds from the Oligocene epoch and today the park's unique landforms are like geologic sculptures that remain a marvel for geologists and visitors alike.
Hoodoos
Hoodoos are fragile pinnacles or spires of rock formed by wind and water erosion. Visible stripes or horizontal strata reveal layers of rock and sediment with varying degrees of hardness. In the Badlands, the hoodoos resemble surreal and gravity-defying moonscapes. Badland hoodoos change constantly and visible shifts can be seen after a single thunderstorm.
Scarp and Scoria
Scarp and scoria are hard, erosion-resistant surfaces that comprise visible landforms. Scarp is hard rock that has withstood millions of years of erosion and comprises the sharply carved buttes that remain standing throughout the Badlands park. Scoria is the hard, dark crust formed from lava flows and ash. It is visible as the dark gray layers or black stripes embedded within the scarp.
Fossil Beds
The Badlands are the world's richest source of Oligocene-era fossil beds, dating back about 30 million years. Vertebrate fossils of large mammals have been found in the Badlands. They reveal that the Badlands were once forests that provided a home for the ancestors of horses, rhinoceros, bison and bighorn sheep. Geologists speculate that large numbers of mammals were killed by floods and preserved for millennia in the river sediment.
Related Posts:
Landforms In The Caribbean
The island is one landform that characterizes the geography of the Caribbean.The Caribbean, which extends from the southern tip of Florida, past the Gulf of Mexico and down to the northeastern tip...
Interesting Places & Landforms To Visit In Paraguay
Nature creates several beautiful waterfalls along Parana River tributaries.While Paraguay does not border any oceans, the landlocked central South American country does have plenty of water. Major...
Landforms In The Basque Region
The Basque city of San Sebastian overlooks La Concha Bay.Basque Country covers an area of about 2,803 square miles in the northwest of Spain. The country has supported generations of sailors, farm...
Clean Fossil Handbags
Clean Fossil HandbagsFossil is a popular brand name. Fossil makes watches, clothing, accessories and handbags. Their handbags are usually very well made, and they often receive high reviews from c...
Boating Parking Permit In Somerset Parks
Only one Somerset park requires a permit to park your trailer.Tucked on the far western edge of Wisconsin on the bank of the wild and scenic St. Croix River, the town of Somerset provides a dozen...
