Savannah Julia Nardone and Jennifer Thai

Part 1: Brief Description & 5 Abiotic Characteristics Savannas are grasslands with some scattered trees and shrubs. -Most savannas are between rain forests and deserts. -They are located close to the Equator, both North and South. -Most receive about 30 to 40 inches of rain per year. -There are dry seasons (which can last up to 5 months) and wet seasons. -The temperature is always warm, around 70 degrees F.

Savannah Locations -Savannahs cover large portions of Africa, Australia, India, and South America. Savannahs are in orange.

Climatograph The dry seasons are June through September, and the wet seasons are October through March.

3 National Parks -Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya -Kidepo Valley National Park, Uganda -Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Botswana

Come to the Savannah! Come to the Savannah, where everything is green; you’ll enjoy all the animals, it is quite the scene.

Part 2: Biotic Factors/Food Web/Food Chain 15 organisms that live in the Savannah: Antelope, Zebras, Cheetahs, Hyenas, Lions, (African ) Elephants, Gazelles, Rhinoceros, Crocodiles, Acacia Trees, Baobabs, Palms, Bermuda Grass, Plasmodium, and Trypanosomes Adaptations that help with survival in the Savannah: ● Drought-resistant: Plants survive with little water from rainfall during the long dry seasons ● Camouflage: Animals avoid predators in the open areas by blending in with their surroundings ● Nocturnal: Animals that are nocturnal can burrow underground during the day to escape predators, and come out to find food at night when it is safer.

3 Food Chains 1.Red oat grass Zebra Lion 2.Gazelle Cheetah Vulture 3.Bermuda Grass Wildebeests Termites

Food Web

Ecological Pyramid Producers: Grasses (Red Oat, Bermuda, etc), Trees (Baobab Acacia) Primary Consumers: Antelope, Zebras, Giraffes, Gazelles, Rhinoceros, Mice, Grasshoppers Secondary Consumers: Lions, Birds, Leopards, Baboons, Foxes, Snakes Tertiary Consumers: Snakes, Predatory Birds, Hyenas

Part 3: Symbiotic Relationships and Competition Mutualism: The oxpecker and rhinoceros mutually help each other. The oxpecker eats the ticks off of the rhinoceros’ backs

Commensalism The egret benefits from the buffalo, and the buffalo remains unaffected. The egret rides on the backs of the buffalo.

Parasitism Plasmodium is a parasite to the mosquito. Because it lives inside digestive tracts of mosquitoes, it can withstand the dry season.

Competition Cheetahs and lions compete for food since they both prey on zebras and other large animals.

Part 4: Human Impact and Conservation Threatened Species: The African Wild Dog is threatened/endangered in the African Savanna. The number of African Wild Dogs is declining due to disease and loss of habitat. Also, farmers fear that African Wild Dogs will kill their livestock, so they hunt them in large numbers.

Environmental Issues One environmental problem that impacts this biome is overuse of land for agriculture and grazing. These activities result in desertification and infertile soil. Some possible solutions to address this problem would be to create more parameters for appropriate distribution of the land for farming, and to designate certain areas populated with a lot of wildlife as “no agriculture areas”.

References African savanna. (n.d.). Retrieved from Burke, C. (n.d.). What are some protists in tropical dry biomes? Retrieved from info_ _protists-tropical-dry-biomes.html Edgar, T. (n.d.). African savanna animal adaptations: camouflage. Retrieved from Eveleigh, M. (n.d.). Africa’s 10 best safari parks. Retrieved from africas-10-best-national-parks Savanna animals. (n.d.). Retrieved from Savanna biomes. (n.d.). Retrieved from Sims, P. (n.d.). Savanna. In World book online. Retrieved from article?id=ar492880&st=savannah Weaver, M Searching the Savanna. (n.d) retrieved October , from ASU School of Life Sciences Web Site: