The Missouri River drains approximately one-sixth of the United States and its basin encompasses 529,350 square miles (1,371,000 km2).

At the Knife River Indian Villages National Historical Site there are the visible remains of earth-lodge dwellings, cache pits, and travois trails.

As the dwellings were abandoned, the walls and roof collapsed and created the visible outer circular rim.

The presence of Sakakawea and her son on the Lewis and Clark Expedition was extremely crucial to the safety and guidance of the party and the success of their mission.

In addition to her ability to translate for them, tribes who encountered the party believed that the presence of the young woman and child indicated they were not a threat.

The Knife River Villages served as an important major central trading and agricultural area.

The two Mandan villages that had been in contact with Lewis and Clark suffered the horrific effects of the virus.

Over the hundreds of years that the Native Americans occupied this area, a very different landscape existed than what can be observed today.

When occupied by the tribes, the upland areas were a mixed prairie region that contained a minimal number of trees.

This fertile area was cleared and used by the Native Americans in the cultivation of such crops as corn, beans, squash, and sunflowers.

Trees such as green ash, cottonwood, American elm, and box elder were common in the bottomlands.

Other smaller trees and shrubs such as sandbar willow, red osier dogwood, and buffalo berry were also common.

A few prairie areas contain wheatgrass, needlegrass, grama, and big bluestem grasses, and many forbs and flowers.

Native wildlife feed on plants such as choke cherry, wild plums, buffaloberry and Juneberry.

The surrounding forests are home to white tailed deer, coyotes, beavers, skunks, prairie pocket gophers, and thirteen-lined ground squirrels.

Game birds found here include turkeys, pheasants, Canada geese, and mourning doves.

Other birds surrounding the rivers that can be viewed here are white pelicans, snow geese, and great blue herons.

The most common order of insects found here include Coleoptera (beetles), Diptera (flies), Hemiptera (true bugs) Homoptera (leaf hoppers), and Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants).

Exotic plant species include leafy spurge, Canada thistle, and sweet clover.

During the summer months, the temperature may reach the upper 80's with relatively low humidity and variable winds.

"Knife River Indian Villages National Historical Site North Dakota."

"Knife River Indian Villages National Historical Site North Dakota."