Britannica Sources used in this answer

Why did some Native American groups in the western prairies shift from agriculture to hunting?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Line graph showing estimated temperature variations from 1000 to 2000 CE for the Northern Hemisphere and central England, with three lines representing different data sources. The chart highlights the medieval warm period around 1100-1300 and the Little Ice Age from about 1500 to 1850, followed by a sharp temperature rise in the late 20th century. Temperature is shown as deviations from the 1961-1990 average. — Little Ice Age Estimates of temperature variations for the Northern Hemisphere and central England from 1000 to 2000 ce.

Between 1250 and 1500, Native American cultures in the western prairies and the upper Mississippi valley experienced a general decline as the climate became increasingly dry. This shift toward drier conditions made traditional agriculture more difficult to sustain, prompting these groups to transition from farming to a reliance on hunting.12

While some village-dwelling peoples managed to sustain their communities during this period of hardship, others were forced to retreat or adapt their economic practices. By the 17th and 18th centuries, this transition was further influenced by the introduction of horses to the Plains, which facilitated a shift toward a nomadic, equestrian way of life centered on the hunting of bison. Over time, some groups that had previously relied on agriculture, such as the Lakota and Nakota, abandoned farming almost entirely in favor of this nomadic hunting economy.34