Kansas Landscapes

The beauty, diversity, and underlying history of the landscapes in which Kansans live

If we view the natural world in the context of time, everything we see becomes a story. Nothing can be truly understood without reference to time and change.

Landscapes are molded by the motions of continents, the uplift and erosion of mountains, the rise and fall of sea levels, and changing global climates. The varied landscapes of Kansas are reflections of their underlying geology. Regions of similar topography are called physiographic provinces and are underlain by rocks of similar age and composition. In Kansas Landscapes, Keith Miller guides readers on a tour of these provinces, from the oldest rocks to those deposited in the relatively recent past. Each region of Kansas is placed into the long chronology of Earth history including changing sea levels and global climates, the uplift and erosion of mountains, and the evolution of life over hundreds of millions of years.

Looking more deeply and closely at Kansas landscapes results in the growing recognition of the extraordinary diversity of nature. Taking the time to recognize the diversity of living things within a landscape transforms how we see that place. The prairie changes from just a sea of grass to a diverse ecosystem of grasses, flowering plants, insects, birds, mammals, and reptiles that interact in complex ways and change dynamically with the seasons. Similarly, recognizing the diversity and environmental and ecological significance of rocks brings to light a previously unseen record of the past.

Kansas Landscapes features stunning color photographs showing the surprising diversity of landscapes and environments in Kansas.