Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park in southwestern South Dakota protects sharply eroded sedimentary formations, mixed-grass prairie, and rich fossil beds.

Badlands: A dry terrain of soft sedimentary rock carved into ridges, gullies, and steep slopes by erosion. The park is a nationally protected example of this distinctive eroded terrain.
Sedimentation: The settling and accumulation of particles that can form sedimentary layers. Ancient sediments created the strata now exposed in the park’s formations.
Yellow Mounds: A colorful badlands formation in South Dakota whose yellow hues come from weathered ancient soils. The mounds expose a distinctive sequence of paleosols within the park.
Oglala Lakota: A Lakota people whose homelands include parts of the northern Great Plains. The park includes land within the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and Oglala Lakota ancestral territory.
Prairie dog town: A colony of prairie dogs whose burrows and social activity alter grassland habitats. Colonies in the park support black-footed ferrets and shape prairie ecology.
White River Group: A sequence of sedimentary rocks deposited across the Great Plains during the late Eocene and Oligocene epochs. Its exposed layers form much of the park’s fossil-rich landscape.
Differential erosion: The uneven wearing away of materials with different resistance to weathering and erosion. Contrasting rock layers weather at different rates, shaping the park’s ridges and spires.
Pinnacles Overlook: A viewpoint overlooking eroded formations in Badlands National Park. Its vistas show how sharply the park’s layered terrain has been dissected.
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation: A reservation in southwestern South Dakota established for the Oglala Lakota. The park’s South Unit lies within the reservation, linking its management to tribal sovereignty.
Dark-sky preservation: The protection of naturally dark nighttime environments from excessive artificial light. The park’s remote setting supports night-sky experiences and reduces light pollution.

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