Grassland Biome
By Jordan Goldstein Biology
Project: Grassland Biome General Information
Almost all grasslands are large, flat fields of grass, flowers and other small plantes such as shrubs and weeds. There may also be a few trees scattered around the area depending on what region of the world your in. They can be the Great Plains in North America, savannas in Africa, steppes in Asia, and pampas in South America. The amount of precipitation is large enough to support animals and small plants, but little enough to cause droughts and fires, which prevent large forests from populating the biome. Soil in most grasslands is thin, which is why a lot of trees can't grow and survive. The temperature and the amount of rain depends on the season. In spring and summer, plants grow when the temperature reaches 50*F. However, in winter, frost covers the ground, so nothing can grow. The temperature can reach an average low of -40*F in winter as well.
Inhabitants
A variety of animals can live in grasslands. In an American grassland, a variety of plants exist. These include Sunflowers, Several types of grass, weeds, clovers, and indigos. A variety of both herbivorous and carnivorous animals also live in the plains. In American grasslands, herbivores consist of animals such as a buffalo, crickets, chickens, turkeys, and beetles. Carnivores consist of animals such as eagles, wolves, bobcats, and coyotes. The wolves and coyotes would prey on animals such as buffalo, while eagles would prey on chickens and turkeys. Competition could be like a relationship between wolves and coyotes. Coyotes are predators, but are also scavengers, as they may try to steal a kill from wolves. Competition could also be like in the African grasslands where lions and cheetahs try to catch the same prey, and hyenas try to steal a kill from them.
Grassland Biome
Picture of a typical grassland.
African Grassland Food Web
American Bison
An average mature American bison in the Great Plains.
Enviromental Concerns and Biome Inportance
Many things threaten the grasslands. One of the threats is habitat loss, because many habitats of the animals have been replaced with farms. This has gotten so bad that, in fact, about 5% of the grasslands remain in the U.S. Grasslands are also being threatened by accelerated climate change because of global warming and human activity, and also by disease, because crops help spread disease, which can infect animals. Both zebras and giraffes of African grasslands have become endangered because of this. We should protect the grasslands because a plethora of animals have adapted to it as their environment, and if we take that away from them, it will become likely that they will go extinct.
Interesting Fact
The 4 seasons are split into 2 more general seasons: spring and summer make up the growing season, while autumn and winter make up the dormant season.
Citations
1. M., Sam. "Grasslands Biome." Grasslands Biome. N.p., 2000. Web. 05 Sept. 2013.
2. Food Web Picture: "Glogster Home Page." Glogster. Metcalfstem51, n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2013.
3.Grassland Picture: "Grassland." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Sept. 2013. Web. 16 Sept. 2013.
4. "Grassland Threats." National Geographic. Domtar, n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2013
5. "Endangered Species - Grassland Biome 2012." Endangered Species - Grassland Biome 2012. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2013.
6. "Global Importance Of The Biome - Savanna Biome." Savanna Biome. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2013