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Can You Identify Midwest & West Landforms?

Think you can spot top midwestern landforms? Dive in and test your Midwest geography skills!

Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art style depiction of Midwest and West landforms with hills rivers plains mountains on teal background

Calling all geography fans and curious explorers! Think you know midwest landforms? This free quick landforms quiz puts your skills to the test as you identify Midwest landforms - from rolling prairies and river bluffs to glacial valleys. Perfect for fans of landforms in the Midwest and anyone curious about midwestern landforms, this fun Midwest geography quiz will challenge you to pinpoint features and expand your regional know-how. Ready to push your limits? Explore landforms in North America and prove your expertise - start now!

What is the primary landform created by glacial retreat that results in a long, winding ridge of sand and gravel?
Esker
Drumlin
Kame
Terminal Moraine
An esker is a sinuous ridge of stratified sand and gravel deposited by meltwater streams flowing within or beneath a retreating glacier. Drumlins and kames are different glacial deposits with distinct shapes, while a terminal moraine marks a glacier’s furthest advance. Eskers are common in the Midwest, especially in places like Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Which type of glacial landform is a shallow, bowl-shaped depression often filled with water?
Kettle Lake
Moraine
Drumlin
Eskers
A kettle lake forms when a block of ice is buried in glacial outwash and then melts, leaving a depression that may fill with water. Moraines and drumlins are different types of glacial deposits and streamlined hills, respectively. Kettle lakes dot regions like Minnesota where glaciation was extensive.
What name is given to the steep-sided cliffs commonly found along the Mississippi River and its tributaries in the Midwest?
Bluffs
Buttes
Escarpments
Mesas
Bluffs are steep riverbanks or cliffs formed by water erosion along rivers, notably the Mississippi. Buttes and mesas are isolated hills with flat tops found mostly in arid regions, while escarpments are long cliff faces. Midwestern bluffs are prominent in states like Wisconsin and Iowa.
The wind?deposited silt that forms tall hills in western Iowa is called what?
Loess
Loam
Clay
Alluvium
Loess is a loosely compacted, wind-blown sediment composed mostly of silt. The Loess Hills of western Iowa are famous for these fine-grained deposits. Alluvium is water?deposited sediment, while loam and clay are soil textures.
Which physiographic province covers much of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio and is known for its fertile plains?
Central Lowland
Appalachian Plateau
Coastal Plain
Atlantic Plateau
The Central Lowland province encompasses the Midwestern states of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, noted for flat to rolling terrain and fertile soils. The Appalachian Plateau is farther east, and neither the Coastal Plain nor Atlantic Plateau lie in the Midwest. The Central Lowland formed from ancient seabed deposits and glacial tills.
The vast grassland region of the central United States, stretching from Texas to Nebraska, is known as what?
Great Plains
Prairie Peninsula
Corn Belt
Sandhills
The Great Plains are an extensive grassland region running from Texas through Nebraska, characterized by flat to gently rolling land. The Prairie Peninsula refers to a northward extension of prairie into the eastern woodlands, and the Corn Belt is a cultural region, not strictly a landform. The Sandhills are a dune region in Nebraska.
What is an outwash plain?
A flat area formed by meltwater streams depositing sediment ahead of a glacier
A ridge of till along the margin of a glacier
A hill carved by glacial ice
A depression left by melting ice blocks
An outwash plain is formed by meltwater streams carrying sediments away from a glacier’s snout and spreading them in layers. A ridge of till is a moraine, a glacial hill is a drumlin or kame, and a depression is a kettle. Outwash plains are common in glaciated regions of the Midwest.
Which feature marks the maximum advance of a glacier?
Terminal moraine
Ground moraine
Lateral moraine
Medial moraine
A terminal moraine is a ridge of debris deposited at the farthest point reached by a glacier. Ground moraines are till sheets under glaciers, lateral moraines border the glacier sides, and medial moraines form where two glaciers meet. Terminal moraines map glacial limits in the Midwest.
What is an alluvial fan?
A fan?shaped deposit formed where a stream’s slope suddenly decreases
A U-shaped valley carved by glaciers
A river meander cutoff feature
A wind-blown dune field
An alluvial fan forms when a high-gradient stream slows abruptly, dropping sediment in a fan shape. U-shaped valleys are glacial troughs, oxbow lakes come from meander cutoffs, and dune fields are aeolian. While less common in the core Midwest, alluvial fans appear in western tributaries.
What is a river terrace?
A step-like landform along river valleys formed by changes in base level
A flat area that forms at a river’s mouth
A mound left by glacial debris
A steep waterfall or cascade
River terraces are former floodplains abandoned as a stream incises its channel due to uplift or lowering base level. Deltas form at river mouths, moraines are glacial ridges, and waterfalls are different fluvial features. Terraces are visible along many Midwestern rivers.
Which landform is characterized by wind?deposited sand, often forming along the Great Lakes shorelines?
Sand dune
Barchan
Loess ridge
Moraine
Sand dunes form where wind deposits loose sand, such as along Lake Michigan’s shorelines in Indiana and Michigan. Barchans are crescent dunes specific in deserts, loess ridges are silt deposits, and moraines are glacial debris. Lake?side dunes are a key Midwest feature.
The Great Lakes basin was primarily formed by which geologic process?
Glacial erosion
Volcanic activity
River downcutting
Tectonic rifting
The basins of the Great Lakes were carved by continental glaciers scouring out depressions in the bedrock. Volcanic, fluvial, and tectonic processes played minimal roles compared to Pleistocene ice. After glaciers retreated, water filled these overdeepened troughs.
What feature is a streamlined, elongated hill of glacial till aligned parallel to ice flow?
Drumlin
Eskers
Kame
Moraine
Drumlins are smooth, teardrop-shaped hills formed under moving ice, aligned with glacial flow. Eskers are sinuous ridges of sediment, kames are mounds, and moraines are broader till accumulations. Drumlins occur in glaciated parts of the Midwest.
Which flat?topped landform with steep sides is common in the southwestern U.S. but also observed in parts of the West?
Mesa
Butte
Plateau
Canyon
A mesa is an isolated, flat?topped hill with steep sides, smaller than a plateau and larger than a butte. Buttes are similar but narrower, plateaus cover larger areas, and canyons are deep valleys. Mesas are hallmarks of the Colorado Plateau region.
The Driftless Area, noted for its lack of glacial deposits, spans multiple states. Which one of these is included?
Wisconsin
North Dakota
Ohio
Illinois
The Driftless Area covers parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois, characterized by rugged terrain untouched by the last glaciers. North Dakota and Ohio were glaciated, leaving drift deposits. This region’s name derives from its absence of glacial drift.
What is a kame?
A hill or mound of glacial sediment deposited by melting ice
A ridge formed at the glacier’s edge
A U-shaped glacial valley
An elongated drumlin
A kame is an irregularly shaped hill formed from sediment depositing in cavities on a melting glacier. A ridge at a glacier’s edge is a moraine, valleys carved by ice are U-shaped troughs, and drumlins are streamlined hills. Kames often occur in clusters called kame fields.
Which glacial landform consists of stratified sediments deposited by meltwater beyond the glacier’s terminus?
Outwash plain
Ground moraine
Medial moraine
Lateral moraine
Outwash plains are formed from glacial meltwater carrying and depositing well-sorted sediments away from the glacier’s terminus. Ground moraines are till beneath glaciers, medial moraines form where two glaciers meet, and lateral moraines border glacier sides. The Red River Valley features outwash deposits from glaciation.
A cuesta is characterized by which of the following?
An asymmetrical ridge with a gentle dip slope and a steep scarp
A perfectly flat plateau
A series of parallel drumlins
A circular depression
Cues are ridges where sedimentary layers dip gently in one direction, creating a smooth slope on one side and a steep scarp on the other. Plateaus are flat expanses, drumlins form elongated hills, and depressions are kettles. Cuestas occur in the Midcontinent where tilted strata are exposed.
Which upland area in Wisconsin links the Superior and Laurentian Lobes of glaciation and contains alternating ridges and kettles?
Kettle Moraine
Driftless Area
Baraboo Hills
Black Hills
The Kettle Moraine in eastern Wisconsin features moraine ridges and kettle holes from two ice lobes. The Driftless Area was unglaciated, the Baraboo Hills are older crystalline rocks, and the Black Hills are in South Dakota. This region is unique for its complex glacial topography.
Which physiographic region is home to steep sandstone cliffs and hoodoos in North Dakota?
Badlands
Loess Hills
Ozark Plateau
Cumberland Plateau
The Badlands in western North Dakota feature eroded sandstone, clay, and silt, forming pinnacles and hoodoos. Loess Hills are silt hills in Iowa, the Ozark Plateau is in Missouri and Arkansas, and the Cumberland Plateau is in the Appalachians. The tri-colored strata of the Badlands reveal ancient environments.
What term describes the series of terraces formed where a river flows through alternating resistant and erodible strata?
Strath terraces
Fill terraces
Pediments
Deltas
Strath terraces form when a river incises bedrock and abandons a former floodplain as rock resistance changes. Fill terraces are built from alluvium, pediments are gently sloping rock surfaces at mountain bases, and deltas form at river mouths. Strath terraces are found along the Minnesota River.
The Chicago moraine is an example of what type of moraine?
Terminal moraine
Ground moraine
Medial moraine
Lateral moraine
The Chicago moraine marks the furthest southern advance of the Wisconsin glaciation in northeastern Illinois. As a terminal moraine, it consists of till deposited at a glacier’s maximum extent. Ground, medial, and lateral moraines describe other positions relative to ice.
Which Midwestern landform is created where a tributary stream joins a larger river and deposits sediment to form a small fan-shaped delta?
Alluvial fan
Bird’s-foot delta
Fluvial delta
Backswamp
A fluvial delta forms where sediment in a tributary settles out at its mouth, often creating a smaller fan shape. Alluvial fans are more common where streams exit confined valleys, bird’s-foot deltas occur at coasts like the Mississippi, and backswamps are floodplain wetlands. Small river deltas appear along the Missouri River’s tributaries.
Which type of valley is typically V-shaped and carved by river erosion rather than ice?
V-shaped valley
U-shaped valley
Glacial trough
Cirque
V-shaped valleys result from fluvial erosion cutting down through bedrock, producing a sharp valley cross-section. U-shaped valleys or glacial troughs are broad and carved by ice, while cirques are bowl-shaped depressions at the heads of glaciers. V-shaped valleys are typical of unglaciated tributaries.
The Ozark Plateau extends across parts of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. What landform type is it considered?
Dissected plateau
Shield
Volcanic plateau
Folded mountain belt
The Ozark Plateau is a dissected plateau, where uplifted sedimentary rock has been heavily eroded into hills, valleys, and springs. Shields are ancient crystalline areas, volcanic plateaus form from lava flows, and folded belts are tectonic folds. The Ozarks’ karst features like caves reflect its limestone composition.
What term describes a perched flat rock surface capping a resistant layer above softer strata in Midwestern landscapes?
Caprock
Pediment
Buttress
Scarp
A caprock is a hard, erosion-resistant layer that protects softer underlying rocks, often forming flat tops on mesas or plateaus. Pediments are gently sloping bedrock surfaces at mountain bases, buttresses are supporting structures, and scarps are steep slopes. Caprock is key to mesa formation in the West.
Which river delta type is formed where sediment supply greatly exceeds wave or tidal redistribution, creating bird’s-foot patterns?
Bird’s-foot delta
Arcuate delta
Estuarine delta
Tidal delta
Bird’s-foot deltas, like the lower Mississippi River, form when river sediment deposition outpaces wave and tidal reworking, creating finger-like distributaries. Arcuate deltas are fan-shaped, estuarine deltas form in wide estuaries, and tidal deltas reflect strong tides. The Mississippi is the classic bird’s-foot example.
In the Basin and Range Province of the western U.S., which structure forms when crustal blocks drop down between parallel faults?
Grabens
Horsts
Domes
Synclines
Grabens are down-dropped blocks between normal faults typical of the extensional Basin and Range Province. Horsts are the uplifted blocks adjacent to grabens, domes are circular uplifts, and synclines are folded troughs. The Great Basin in Nevada contains many graben basins.
The high terrace surfaces of the Upper Mississippi Valley are primarily composed of sediments from which glacial period?
Wisconsinan glaciation
Illinoian glaciation
Kansan glaciation
Pre-Illinoian glaciation
The Wisconsinan glaciation (last major advance) deposited extensive till and outwash that form high terraces along the Mississippi Valley. Earlier Illinoian and Kansan deposits underlie but are less prominent on surface terraces. Pre-Illinoian is older still and deeply buried.
Which karst feature is created when a cave roof collapses, leaving a circular depression?
Sinkhole
Karst tower
Grotto
Polje
Sinkholes form as limestone bedrock dissolves and cave roofs collapse, common in the karst landscapes of southern Indiana and Missouri. Karst towers are residual hills in tropical karst, grottos are caves, and poljes are large karst plains. Indiana’s sinkhole lakes illustrate this collapse process.
Which feature in the western U.S. is an example of differential erosion on tilted sedimentary beds, creating alternating ridges and valleys?
Cuesta landscape
Badlands topography
Playa basins
Alluvial fans
Cuesta landscapes form where gently dipping strata erode at different rates, leaving ridges on harder layers and valleys on softer ones. Badlands are heavily eroded clay-rich terrains, playas are dry lakebeds, and alluvial fans are depositional. The Dakota Formation in South Dakota displays cuesta topography.
Which distinct erosional feature along the Missouri River in South Dakota contains deep canyons and spires carved into sedimentary rock?
Badlands
Loess Hills
Black Hills
Sandhills
The Badlands National Park area consists of sharply eroded buttes, spires, and deep canyons in Cenozoic sedimentary rock along the White River, a Missouri tributary. Loess Hills are silt dunes in Iowa, the Black Hills are a dome uplift, and the Sandhills are Nebraska dunes. Erosion rates in the Badlands exceed most other U.S. landscapes.
Which term defines the boundary between the saturated and unsaturated zones in groundwater systems?
Water table
Aquitard
Aquiclude
Perched water
The water table is the top of the zone of saturation where groundwater fills all pores. Aquitards and aquicludes refer to low-permeability layers, and perched water is a local saturated zone above the main table. Understanding the water table is key to Midwestern aquifer studies.
The formation of the Driftless Area is linked to which glacial lobe that bypassed the region?
Superior Lobe
Lake Michigan Lobe
Huron-Erie Lobe
Ohio Lobe
The Superior Lobe of the Laurentide Ice Sheet flowed southward into Wisconsin but split around the Driftless Area, leaving it unglaciated. Later lobes like Lake Michigan and Huron-Erie covered adjacent regions. The bypass explains the area’s rugged topography.
Which geologic province underlies the Black Hills and is characterized by an igneous core uplifted through sedimentary layers?
Laramide uplift
Basin and Range
Colorado Plateau
Ouachita Orogen
The Black Hills formed during the Laramide orogeny when deep-seated igneous intrusions uplifted the overlying Paleozoic and Mesozoic strata. The Basin and Range and Colorado Plateau represent different tectonic regimes, and the Ouachita Orogen is in the south. The Black Hills uplift is a classic Laramide feature.
Which landform type is defined by eroded sedimentary rock layers shaped into alternating hogbacks and cuestas?
Tilted strata escarpment
Karst plain
Volcanic plateau
Glacial till plain
Tilted strata escarpments arise where sedimentary beds are inclined, creating hogbacks (steep edges) and cuestas (gentle dip slopes and steep scarps). Karst plains, volcanic plateaus, and till plains are distinct. This pattern occurs in parts of the western Midwest and Great Plains.
Which feature illustrates knickpoint migration in river profiles, often seen in waterfall retreat?
Niagara Falls erosion headward
Mississippi meander cutoff
Alluvial fan growth
Glacial cirque formation
Knickpoints like Niagara Falls migrate upstream as they erode the rock at their base. Meander cutoffs, alluvial fans, and glacial cirques involve different processes. Niagara’s rate of retreat demonstrates knickpoint dynamics in fluvial systems.
Which process led to the formation of the Finger Lakes region in upstate New York, analogous to glacial troughs in the Midwest?
Glacial overdeepening
River capture
Tectonic faulting
Volcanic caldera collapse
The Finger Lakes are long, narrow basins carved by glacial overdeepening during the last ice age, similar to the Great Lakes. River capture and tectonics played minor roles, and there’s no volcanic caldera. Overdeepened troughs fill with water post-glaciation.
Which glacial lobe’s readvance during the Late Wisconsinan left a distinct moraine complex across southern Michigan called the Lake Border moraines?
Saginaw Lobe
Superior Lobe
Huron-Erie Lobe
Ontario Lobe
The Saginaw Lobe readvanced along Michigan’s lower peninsula, forming the Lake Border moraines north of the Thumb region. Superior and Huron-Erie lobes impacted other areas, and no Ontario Lobe existed. This morainal complex records Late Wisconsinan dynamics.
What is the sequence of depositional surfaces from oldest to youngest in a glaciated valley where glacial, fluvial, and eolian processes have occurred?
Glacial till, outwash plain, loess blanket
Loess blanket, glacial till, outwash plain
Outwash plain, loess blanket, glacial till
Outwash plain, glacial till, loess blanket
First, glaciers deposit till, followed by meltwater forming outwash plains, and finally wind transports silt to blanket the area as loess. Reversing this order contradicts the chronological sequence of glacial retreat and sediment availability. This triad is common in the Upper Mississippi Valley.
Which process explains the origin of perched water tables common in the sandstone aquifers of the Midwest?
Low-permeability shale layers acting as aquitards
Karst dissolution creating underground channels
Direct recharge from surface lakes
Tidal influences from ancient seas
Perched water tables occur where impermeable shale lenses within sandstone units prevent downward flow, causing localized saturation zones. Karst channels and tidal influences don’t produce perched tables, and lakes recharge but don’t create perched conditions. Shale aquitards are the key factor.
During the Illinoian glaciation, which paleolake formed in the Michigan Basin, influencing modern coastal bluff composition?
Lake Chicago
Lake Algonquin
Lake Maumee
Lake Agassiz
Lake Chicago was the proglacial lake in the southern Lake Michigan Basin during the Late Wisconsin, later evolving into the modern lake. Algonquin and Maumee were earlier or adjacent proglacial lakes in other basins, and Agassiz was much larger in the prairies. Lake Chicago deposits form modern bluffs.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Identify Major Midwest Landforms -

    After completing the quiz, you will be able to name and recognize key midwest landforms such as the Ozarks, Great Plains, and Great Lakes basin.

  2. Differentiate Landform Characteristics -

    You will learn to distinguish between landforms in the Midwest based on their geological features and formation processes.

  3. Locate Landforms on a Map -

    You will gain confidence in pinpointing various midwestern landforms on a regional map during geography challenges.

  4. Recall Key Geological Facts -

    The quiz will reinforce your memory of essential facts about Midwest landforms and their significance in American geography.

  5. Analyze Regional Geography -

    You will be able to compare and contrast landforms in the Midwest and West, understanding how topography shapes the heartland.

  6. Apply Knowledge to Future Quizzes -

    By mastering these landforms, you can approach other Midwest geography quizzes and educational activities with greater expertise.

Cheat Sheet

  1. The Great Plains -

    The Great Plains span the central U.S. and feature gently rolling grasslands built on glacial till left by the Laurentide Ice Sheet (USGS). Picture states like Kansas and Nebraska with sedimentary layers over 300 m deep. Mnemonic: "GP = Great Prairie" helps you recall its vast prairies and core role in Midwest geography quiz questions.

  2. Ozark Plateau -

    The Ozark Plateau rises across Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma and is known for its karst topography of caves, springs, and sinkholes (Arkansas Geological Commission). Formed by uplifted Cambrian limestone, it hosts Mammoth Spring and Blanchard Springs Caverns. Memory aid: "Ozark Echo" reminds you of its echoing caverns and unique plateau structure.

  3. Great Lakes Basin -

    Carved by Pleistocene glaciers, the Great Lakes basin holds 21% of the world's surface freshwater across Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario (NOAA). The basin's watershed shapes regional climate and supports major ports like Chicago and Cleveland. Use the HOMES acronym - Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior - to lock in the lakes' names for any landforms in the Midwest trivia.

  4. Driftless Area -

    Covering parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois, the Driftless Area escaped glaciation, leaving steep river valleys and karst features (UW - Madison). Its rugged topography contrasts sharply with surrounding glaciated plains. Think "no drift, no drift" - meaning it has no glacial drift - to remember its unglaciated heritage.

  5. Loess Hills -

    Stretching along the Missouri River in western Iowa, the Loess Hills are made of wind-blown silt up to 60 m thick deposited after the last Ice Age (Iowa Geological Survey). Their vertical bluffs and narrow ridges host rare prairie ecosystems. Mnemonic: "Loose Loess" cues the fine, easily eroded silts that define this striking midwestern landform.

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