# Prairie Peninsula
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{{Short description|Ecological area in North America}}
thumb|Extent of the Prairie Peninsula as mapped in 1935
The '''Prairie Peninsula''' is an eastward projection of vegetation typically found in the American [prairie](/source/prairie)s into [Wisconsin](/source/Wisconsin), [Illinois](/source/Illinois), [Indiana](/source/Indiana), and [Ohio](/source/Ohio).[{{cite journal |last1=Stuckey |first1=Ronald L. |title=The prairie peninsula--in the "shadow" of Transeau |journal=Proceedings of the Sixth North American Prairie Conference |date=August 1978 |pages=12–17 |url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/EcoNatRes/EcoNatRes-idx?type=article&did=ECONATRES.NAPC06.RSTUCKEY&id=EcoNatRes.NAPC06&isize=text |accessdate=3 June 2020 |publisher=Ohio State University |location=Columbus, Ohio}}] It is so named because it is an extension of [grassland](/source/grassland) into the forests of the [eastern United States](/source/eastern_United_States).[{{cite web |last1=Anderson |first1=Roger C. |title=Ecology and Management of the Prairie Division |url=https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/gtr/gtr_srs161/gtr_srs161_175.pdf |website=usda.gov |publisher=USDA Forest Service |access-date=2 June 2022}}]
Anthropogenic fire regimes are considered to have helped maintain the eastern prairies.[{{cite book |last1=Meszaros |first1=Gary |last2=Denny |first2=Guy L. |title=The Prairie Peninsula |date=June 2017 |publisher=The Kent State University Press |isbn=978-1-60635-320-2 |url=https://www.kentstateuniversitypress.com/2016/the-prairie-peninsula/ |accessdate=3 June 2020}}]
==History==
The Prairie Peninsula was mostly forested during the early [Holocene](/source/Holocene). Prairie species began to thrive as aridity in the region increased between 10,000 and 8,500 years ago, displacing trees such as [elms](/source/elm_tree), [ashes](/source/ash_tree), [ironwoods](/source/Ostrya), and [sugar maple](/source/sugar_maple)s. Trees recolonized the area between 8,500 and 6,200 years ago, such as [oaks](/source/oak_tree) and [hickories](/source/hickory_tree). The prairie ecosystem became dominant again around 6,200 years ago, despite the climate being less arid than it was between 10,000 and 8,500 years ago.
It is hypothesized that the [tallgrass prairie](/source/tallgrass_prairie) persisted through wildfires started by anthropogenic activity and by lightning.[{{cite web |title=Prairie – Ohio Plants |url=https://ohioplants.org/prairie/ |accessdate=3 June 2020}}] The formation of the peninsula is thought to be due to soil moisture retention that differs from the surrounding forests of the region.[{{cite journal |last1=Manogaran |first1=Chelvadurai |title=The Prairie Peninsula: A Climatic Perspective |journal=Physical Geography |date=1 July 1983 |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=153–166 |doi=10.1080/02723646.1983.10642237 |bibcode=1983PhGeo...4..153M |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02723646.1983.10642237?journalCode=tphy20 |accessdate=3 June 2020 |issn=0272-3646|url-access=subscription }}] Deep soil moisture is not retained year-round, as the rates of [evapotranspiration](/source/evapotranspiration) are high during the growing season. While shallow rooting grasses are less affected, tap-rooting trees are disadvantaged.