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Jackson Prairie

Ecoregion in MS

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The Jackson Prairie ecoregion is a narrow belt of irregular plains and low, broad hills underlain primarily by the Yazoo Clay of the Eocene-age Jackson Group. The calcareous clay, sand, and marl is commonly overlain by alkaline, clayey soils that expand when wet and shrink when dry. Fossilized bones of ancient whale-like mammals (Basilosaurus cetoides and Zygorhiza kochii) are found in this formation, along with fossil oyster shells and other calcareous sediments that contributed to the formation of the alkaline soils. Although the region is only mapped in Mississippi, a few small areas that have similar soils extend into western Alabama. The historic vegetation was mostly mixed hardwood and pine forests with a scattering of prairies. The soils and gentle topography of the region attracted early settlement and agricultural development, but logging, cultivation, and land abandonment also caused extensive soil erosion. Fire suppression also allowed encroachment of woody vegetation into the prairies. Today, much of the region is forested or in pine plantations, with some rowcrop agriculture, and grazing and haying for livestock production. Some isolated calcareous prairie remnants occur, surrounded by more acidic mixed pine and hardwood forests. Efforts are being made to maintain the prairie species with controlled burning and other management programs on national forest lands.

— EPA

Plants

Cogongrass Imperata cylindrica (species), “Kunai Grass”, “Kura-Kura”, “Alang-Alang”, “Blady Grass”, “Satin Tail”, “Cotton Wool Grass”, “Japanese Bloodgrass”

Jackson Prairie

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