1. Tropical Grassland (Savanna)
Angelina Rivera
Period 5

2. Location
Tropical grasslands are located near the equator, between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. They cover much of Africa as well as large areas of Australia, South America, and India.

3. Abiotic Factors
Weather- The average day during the winter-dry season is cool, but never gets cold. The summer- rainy season is humid and very wet.
Climate- Savannas are typically warm year round. What makes them different from a desert is the slightly greater abundance of vegetation. Although this biome does not receive enough rainfall to be classified as a rain forest, it is not dry enough to be a desert.
Soil- Particularly during the dry season the soil becomes extremely unfertile and many of the small grasses and shrubs die off. In the summer-wet season, the soil in the tropical grassland tends to be very fertile due to constant grazing of large herbivores. The animals also leave behind nutrients and the grasses and small shrubs replenish.
Water- Water is scarce during the winter-dry season, however in the summer months water is somewhat plentiful which allows small shrubs and grasses to thrive.
Topography- Savannas are a flat grassland and so do not have any mountains or volcanoes to affect the climate. Because there are few trees, the air gets extremely hot. The hot air rises and influences air flow patterns, which also affects rainfall patterns. The minimal tree coverage also causes temperatures to rise dramatically during the day and plummet at night.

4. Biotic Factors
Giraffes
Elephants
Leopards
Grass, Trees
Lichens

5. Climate
Tropical grasslands are found in tropical wet and dry climates. These areas are hot year-round, usually never dropping under 64 degrees Fahrenheit.
These areas are overall very dry, they do have a season of heavy rain.
Annual rainfall is from inches per year.
It is crucial that the rainfall is concentrated in six or eight months of the year, followed by a long period of drought when fires can occur. If the rain were well distributed throughout the year, many such areas would become tropical forest.

7. Net Primary Productivity
Net Primary Productivity is the amount of carbon uptake after subtracting plant respiration from Gross Primary Productivity.
The NPP for Tropical Grasslands-the savanna-is averaged to be 3,200 as shown in the diagram.

8. Succession Secondary Succession:
Primary Succession:
Volcano erupts and makes new volcanic rock
Moss grows on volcanic rock and becomes pioneer species
Short grasses start growing in thin soil that was formed from rock
Soil gets deeper and starts forming tall grasses
Once a large enough layer of soil has formed, trees can start growing
Secondary Succession:
Secondary succession is common in this biome. There are seasonal fires that occur and burn down many trees, grasses, and shrubs.
There are plants that have adapted and become fireproof but there is still quite a bit of burnt plants. This clears and area with rich soil for more to grow.

10. Habitats & Niches
The plant eating animals have developed ways at avoiding predators. Some animals like the gazelle and ostrich use speed to try and outrun predators. The giraffe uses its height to spot predators from far off and the elephant uses its shear size and strength to keep predators away
Predators of the savanna have adapted their own special skills. The cheetah is the fastest land animal and can run in bursts of 70 miles per hour to catch its prey. Other animals, like lions and hyenas, hunt in groups and trap the weaker animals away from the protection of the herd.

11. Food Chain

12. Food Web

13. Energy Pyramid
The primary producers will begin with 100% of the energy but once the primary consumer such as the giraffe eats a producer, the body will use up 90% of the energy in their food leaving it with only 10% of the original energy to pass on. The energy will be used to carry out the normal bodily functions such as digesting food or cellular respiration. Much of the energy that is in what you eat is released in excess heat from the body. Since there are four trophic levels to this energy pyramid, the final trophic level will only consist of 0.1% of the original energy.

14. Biomass Pyramid

15. Trophic levels
Trophic levels differ as they enter different grasslands for example the South African Savanna

16. 10 Tropical Grassland Animals/ Adaptations
African Elephant- It has a trunk and tusks which keep him alive. It uses its tusks in order to protect himself. It uses its trunk in order to drink, gather food and bathe itself. These things are a physical part of the animal. If the animal did not have these things it would not be able to eat, drink, bath itself or protect itself.
Black Mamba ( fastest land snake) - Its speed (5.4m per second) , venom and features in its body (immovable fangs, flexible jaws and scales helps eat a animal whole).
Hyena- Strong jaws and teeth, allows it to hunt and bring down prey that is much larger than itself as well as pulverize hard bones when eating. Also has a striped, spotted or solid-colored golden brown coat that helps it to camouflage itself in the savanna.
Caracal- Ear tufts that focus sound into the caracal's ears, improving its ability to pinpoint the position of its prey. Can survive without water, Without a need for a nearby water source, caracals can exploit territory that other cats neglect.
African Wild Dog- has large, rounded ears and a short broad muzzle and powerful jaw muscles that.
Lion- Their roar is used to communicate with other group members, also a rough tongue that helps it to peel the skin of prey animals away from flesh and flesh away from bone.
Giraffe- They drink water when it is available but can go weeks without it and have very long necks are an adaption to feeding at high levels in the treetops.
Zebra- They have stripes that makes it harder for predators to judge distances.
Wildebeest- Their horns help them defend themselves. Their dull teeth grind what they eat. Fur keeps them warm in cold weather. They have dark, vertical stripes to help hide them in the dark. Their long tail, like horses, helps by swatting flies. They have thin legs that might trick its predator so it can escape.
Cheetah- spotted coat which helps the cat to blend into their environment and have great eyesight that they use to find signs of prey in the tall dry grasses that make up their habitat.

17. 5 Tropical Grassland Plants/ Adaptation
Acacia Senegal- Can survive drought conditions because it has developed long tap roots that can reach deep, ground water sources. It is also fire resistant.
Baobab- Is slick and shiny reflects light and heat, keeping it cool in the intense savannah sun.
Candelabra Tree- has adapted its stems to catch every bit of water it can, from morning dew to summer downpours.
Elephant Grass- thick, swollen trunks which serve for water storage
Gum Tree- tough and waterproof leaves, these leaves won't dry out in hot and humid weather, they droop downwards so the heat is avoided at all times. The roots grow deep to find enough water to be able to survive. The branches are also dropped during drought season, so the tree doesn't need as much water at times.

18. Human Activity
Humans impact the Grassland Savanna by lessening the area of the land by making new space for industrialization.
The trees and animals have less space to be so the population decreases with the land, making everything smaller.
A large number of animals have been hunted for their valuable body parts.
The reason of there are not many positive impacts of human activity because there is not many things humans can do to help the biome besides leave it alone and let everything happen naturally because everything has adapted to survive and live on their own, and that’s what they are doing and why human impact does not do many positives things.

19. Case Study
Good
bad
National parks have been developed around grasslands, and some organizations replant depleted areas.
Governments have enacted laws against the hunting of endangered animals.
Urban developments- which causes animals from populated areas to leave, changing the conditions of the environment.
Hunting- causing extinction Ex: rhinoceroses tusks
Global Warming- causing ecological succession, in which the ecosystem of an area develops into another