Tropical Grassland & Savanna
During dry winter months, tropical grasslands grow parched and their streams and pools dry up. With summer, however, comes rain, and the land is transformed by flourishing grasses and flowers.
Surprisingly, tropical grasslands are often found in regions with enough rainfall to support luxuriant tropical rain forests year-round. But extensive tree growth in these areas is discouraged by strong winds that blow across the flat land and by the fast-draining grassland soils. Where trees such as baobabs and acacias do grow, they tend to be scattered about; such grassland is called a savanna. Africa is renowned for savannas where giraffes browse on trees almost twenty feet (6 m) high. Another browser, the African elephant, munches on trees as well as bushes and grass. Scientists believe that the elephants may coordinate their eating patterns by signaling to each other in ultra-low pitches. At night during the dry season, these sounds can travel as far as twelve miles (20 km).
Other grassland wildlife includes zebras and blackbucks, ungulates that feed on grass and must cover vast distances in search of fresh green patches. Preying on these large herds of herbivores are carnivorous such as cheetahs, lions, hyenas, and hunting dogs.
The specialized feeding habits and preferences of most ungulates may reduce competition among species. For example, although herds of gnus consume about 80 percent of the grass growing in their path across the Serengeti plain during their annual migration, by the time the herds of Thomson's gazelles pass over the land a couple of months later, the grazed-over grass reveals fresh shoots — their preferred food.
Ready for the first mammal? Check out the African Elephant.
>>Map of World Biomes<<
