 The gently rolling hills and shallow lakes were formed by glacial action, while the Badlands to the west are characterized by the lack of this action, and the Red River Valley to the east was a lake bed.This distinction causes the area considered as Drift Prairie to overlap somewhat with the Missouri Plateau, another of North Dakota's distinct geographic regions, but the Drift Prairie also includes the Souris River basin.Prairie grasses and wheat grow there making it a perfect place for ranchers.