Ecosystems
Great Plains
Also Known As Western Plains
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The Great Plains, also called the Western Plains, is a broad expanse of prairie and steppe flatland covering roughly 2.8 million square kilometers of North America. Fossil dental-wear evidence has revived a genuine dispute over why grazing mammals evolved such abrasion-resistant teeth there: the traditional explanation points to grass itself, but a competing grit, not grass hypothesis argues windblown dust and soil grit may be the real driver.
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Area (sq km) Cross-Tradition Connections
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The bison is the defining large grazer of the North American Plains, both historically (tens of millions before the 19th century collapse) and in today's restored conservation herds.
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Open Questions (1 open question)
Open Question: Great Plains
Fossil dental-wear evidence has revived a dispute over why grazing mammals on the Great Plains evolved such abrasion-resistant teeth: the traditional account credits grass itself, while a competing hypothesis points to windblown grit and dust instead.
What would resolve this Comparative dental microwear and phytolith analysis distinguishing tooth wear caused by grass silica from wear caused by ingested mineral grit.
PaleontologyGreat Plains (Wikipedia)
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