Grassland Biome By Lauren Canfield & Adam Young Fall 2009

Introduction We are exploring and trying to survive in the Grassland Biome. The Grassland Biome is gigantic and varied in topography, temperature and location. This biome includes the Savanna, the Temperature grassland and the Alpine Tundra. What makes this biome so interesting is that the Savanna is hot year round and the Alpine tundra is mountainous and snowy. Come learn with us as we discover this exciting biome!

Geographical Characteristics The savanna and the alpine grasslands look very different but in some ways they are the same. The savanna has scattered trees and the alpine tundra doesn’t have any. Trees can grow in the savanna because there is rain but not much of it. Trees can not grow in the alpine tundra because it is very cold and the well drained soil. As we hike up one of the snowy mountains in the tundra, we slip slide and realize we need our snow shoes. As soon as we put them on our problem is solved! We love hiking around the tundra because there are many wild and beautiful animals to see such as Ermine.

Geographical Char. ~ 2 The alpine grasslands and the savanna both are mountainous. You can find the alpine tundra on towering and cold mountains. The grasses in the savanna and alpine tundra are very different. The savanna has tall grasses and the alpine tundra has short grasses. The alpine tundra and the savanna are both open landscapes. There also not many bushes or shrubs in either grassland. The only shrubs and bushes that you would find would be near water. The temperate grasslands are alike to the alpine’s grasses in a few ways. They both have short grasses. The temperate grasslands is different from the savanna because the savanna has tall grasses. But they are different in some ways. The temperate grassland has hot summers and cold winters. The alpine tundra is cold all the time. The alpine tundra is a barren place unlike the temperate grassland.

Areas of the Grassland Biome Savanna Tundra

Climate The climate of the savanna is warm year round. We never need a coat or jacket there. The summer temperatures range from 78° – 86° F. We like the warmer weather much more than the cold so we like the savanna. The winter temperature doesn’t get much colder than 60°. Once we arrive in the savanna, sweat begins dripping off our faces so we knew it is summer. The annual amount of rainfall in the savanna is about 10” – 30”. When we arrived in the temperate grassland we weren’t as hot as we were in the savanna. The climate of the temperate grassland in the summer is about 70°F. The winter temperature is about 40°F. We prefer the temperate grassland because we like the mild weather. When we arrived at the alpine tundra, we were shivering and our teeth were chattering. Since you would find the alpine tundra on top of mountains, it very cold, windy, and snowy. We then took out our winter coats and put them on immediately. The alpine tundra is cold year round. It is about 10.4°F year round.

Eat to Survive In the savannah we have run out of our food supply so we need to go hunting. Some of the available animals are gazelles, wild dogs, zebras, and lions. We need to catch “our dinner” before the sun goes down or we won’t be able to see a thing. Most likely we can catch a wild dog. When our food supply is very low in the temperate grassland our hunting consists of prairie dogs, badgers and coyotes. Bison also exists there but they are huge and it would be a waste of the animal as we couldn’t save part of it with refrigeration. We have run out of food in the Alpine Tundra we have to hunt soon and catch something. There are alpacas, yaks, lamas and ermine, to name a few of the available animals.

Survival Surviving in the grassland biome is very difficult. The temperatures can go sky high or as cold as a freezer. In the savanna, the temperatures are really hot. It can get to 86°F. And with the savanna being so dry and hot, it doesn’t rain often which makes it hard to find water. So our biggest challenge in the savanna is to find water. Our biggest challenge in the alpine tundra is trying to keep warm in the freezing weather. Our biggest challenge in the temperate grassland is trying to stay warm during the winter. But we are up to all of the challenges. We find ways to deal with all of it!

Our Shelter In the temperate grassland we build a shelter out of rocks and wood. We use large rocks to make sure nothing blows away. We collect sticks for walls and a roof. We use blankets when we sleep and it is pretty simple shelter but it works. In the Alpine Tundra we are driving in our Land Rover and then something hits us! We can not pitch our tent because there are no trees and we need wood for stakes. We have an idea! We will sleep in the Land Rover as we have brought lots blankets with us. This would make a perfect shelter in the cold, snowy tundra. Right now we are in the savanna looking for shelter. We were only able to pack a big tarp and a rope. As we were hiking along, we tripped on two sticks and it gave us an idea. We will make a teepee. Brilliant! We each take one of the two sticks and go looking for more. We each find two more sticks then meet each other again where we first had the idea to build our shelter. When it we put it together, it was great because it met our needs.

Poem of the Grassland Biome In the savanna A lion chases a herd of gazelles One stops running And then The lion pounces Sinking it’s teeth into the gazelle Bringing home its prize In the alpine tundra Is true beauty Soaring through the sky A snowy owl An ermine scampers through the snow Skidding to a halt Looking up at a musk ox and then the ermine is gone In the temperate grassland A prairie dog digs a hole Blinking at the sunset A splash of colors And digs out of sight