Natural History of the Black Hills and Badlands by Sven G. Froiland (review)

The Black Hills of South Dakota is a forested island in the grassland ocean of the Great Plains. This region is unique from its geology to the distinctive ecosystems within its border. Froiland’s book does a superb job of introducing a student of natural history to the Black Hills. The book is divided into sections that detail general, historic, and biological information. This revised edition also includes a section that describes current environmental issues within the Black Hills and another section that details the Badlands. The appendixes contain useful information that ranges from a list of rare plant species to butterfly species present. A detailed geologic map of the Black Hills also is included, with a description of the topography and geology that is quite useful. Froiland uses the typical topographic features defined by previous researchers, from the Central Hills to the Hogback Ridge. He illustrates the interesting geology in each of the topographic zones and gives the reader adequate detail regarding the geologic processes that formed these areas.

The section on human history includes information about Paleoindians through the later US Army expeditions. Of particular interest is his writings about the Sioux. He gives a detailed account of their trek from the western Great Lakes to the Great Plains where they had considerable influence in the mid-19th century. The biological information section includes the most comprehensive material in the book. The early expeditions into the Black Hills are documented, and their impact on local scientific knowledge is explained. Famous botanists, from Asa Gray to Per Axel Ryberg, made major contributions to the botanical discoveries in the area. Froiland details the major vegetative zones in the Black Hills and describes the principal plant and animal species found in each zone, from the grassland foothills to the white spruce forests at higher elevations. He covers the respective faunal community in sections describing amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Each section is prefaced for the natural history of the species. He supplies a checklist of the birds that are permanent residents, summer residents, and transients in the Black Hills, which birders will appreciate. The book culminates with a section on the current environment of the Hills and another on the Badlands. Froiland deals with issues ranging from water usage to mining. These themes are commonplace to the West. In the final section, the late Dr. Ronald R. Weeden elucidated geologic and biological topics relevant to the Badlands.

This book is extremely useful for any student of natural history of the Black Hills. However, some of the material is dated. The revised edition was published in 1990. Much knowledge has been gained regarding early Native Americans and their migration to North America since the initial publication. Biological communities also have changed significantly. The book mentions the mountain pine beetle and documents the decline of this insect pest during the late 1980s, but the Black Hills have experienced dramatic deforestation by the beetle in the first decade of the 21st century. The mountain lion was reported as an infrequent visitor to the Black Hills, but today a significant population of mountain lions occupies the region. Froiland reported that condition of the black-footed ferret was unknown, but ferrets were reintroduced into the Badlands in the mid-1990s. The section regarding the current environment also is somewhat dated. However, despite these few shortcomings, this book will be valuable reference for anyone who is interested in the history, geology, flora, and fauna of the Black Hills. I currently teach a summer course on the natural history of the Black Hills, and this is the required book for the course.