South Dakota

Wind Cave National Park - photo by US Park Service

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Wind Cave National Park http://www.nps.gov/wica/index.htm One of the world's longest and most complex caves and 28,295 acres of mixed-grass prairie, ponderosa pine forest, and associated wildlife are the main features of the park. The cave is well known for its outstanding display of boxwork, an unusual cave formation composed of thin calcite fins resembling honeycombs. The park's mixed grass prairie is one of the few remaining and is home to native wildlife such as bison, elk, pronghorn, mule deer, coyotes, and prairie dogs. 

Black Hills National Forest http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/blackhills/ The Black Hills National Forest is located in southwestern South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming on 1.2 million ponderosa pine-studded acres ranging in elevation as high as 7,242 feet. Amid the splendid scenery are 11 reservoirs, 30 campgrounds, 26 picnic areas, 2 scenic byways, 1,300 miles of streams, 13,426 acres of wilderness, over 450 miles of trails, and much more. 

Needles Area Old Growth Report http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/blackhills/resources/fact_sheets/og_rpt.pdf

Custer State Park http://www.sdgfp.info/parks/Regions/Custer/Index.htm Custer State Park in the Black Hills encompasses 71,000 acres of spectacular terrain and an abundance of wildlife. Favorite outdoor activities include hiking 7,242-foot Harney Peak, mountain biking, horseback riding, rock climbing, fishing, chuckwagon suppers and jeep rides to see the bison. The park boasts scenic drives such as the Needles Highway (SD 87), which twists and turns its way past towering rock formations and through narrow tunnels. At the end of one tunnel stands the Needles Eye, a granite spire with a slit only 3 to 4 feet wide but reaching 30 to 40 feet in the air.

GORP - South Dakota Wilderness Areas http://gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/us_wilderness_area/sd.htm - Black Elk Wilderness

South Dakota's forest resources in 2005 http://www.treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/19108 Results of the 2005 annual inventory of South Dakota show 1.7 million acres of forest land in the State. Timberland accounted for more than 90 percent of the forest land area. More than 70 percent of the timberland is publicly owned. Eighty percent (1.2 billion cubic feet) of the growing-stock volume on timberland came from ponderosa pine. All live aboveground tree biomass on timberland totaled 30.3 million dry tons. Major insect problems in South Dakota's forests were mountain pine beetle and the pine engraver beetle.