Badlands - Definition and Overview

See also: Badlands (movie)

Badlands are a type of arid terrain with clay-rich soil that has been extensively eroded by wind and water. Canyons, ravines, gullies, hoodoos and other such geological forms are common in badlands.

Badlands usually have a spectacular color display that alternates from dark black/blue coal stria to bright clays to red scoria.

Some of the most famous fossil beds are found in Badlands, where the forces of erosion have exposed the sedimentary layers and the lack of vegetation cover makes surveying relatively easy.

One of the most famous Badlands formations lies in the Dakotas. This area is home to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota and Badlands National Park in South Dakota.

There is also a sizeable area of Badlands in Alberta. The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Drumheller, Alberta exhibits fossils found in the area.

Example Usage of Badlands