Savannah (Terrestrial)

1. Savannah (Terrestrial) By Katie Bell and Olivia Solley Honors Biology Mr. Z

2. Climate • The climate of the Savanna is wet and dry. • Tropical Savannas can receive 30 to 50 inches of rain in the wet season, which is during the summer months. • However, they receive as little as 4 inches of rain in the dry season. • The temperature ranges from 68 degrees to 78 degrees in the dry season and 78 degrees to 86 degrees in the wet season.

3. Soil and Geologic Characteristics • The Savanna is a plain or tropical grassland that has scattered trees • Savannas can be found in Africa, Australia, Madagascar, India, South America, and the Southeast part of Asia • In the Savanna there can be found many diverse soil types including Clays, Lateritic, Red/Yellow Earths, Lithosols, Alluvial, etc • Depending on many factors, the soil of the savanna in a given location can be influenced by the climate, the terrain, and the amount of precipitation that the area receives daily

4. Latitudes • Savannas are found today across Africa, South America, Central America, Australia, India, and Southeast Asia. • They appear at low latitudes where the average temperature is high and remains constant. They also appear where the rainfall is high but very seasonal.

5. Map of Where Savanna Biomes can be Found (In Orange)

6. Altitudes • Altitudes vary almost as much as the soil does and a savanna’s altitudes can range from sea level to over 60,000ft • This variation of the altitudes effects the savanna by causing a variation in types of plants and soils and temperature • Where the altitudes are high, in those areas are high levels of humidity as well as the terrain being divided into hills and ridges • When the altitudes are low the soil is more sandy and stretches into more drier areas

7. Species Diversity • The Savanna is home to many different species • These species range from elephants to zebras to lions to grass to trees. • The Savanna biome is has a great species diversity because it serves as the habitat to various species.

8. Producers • Wild Grass is the biggest producer in the savanna as it is important because it provides most herbivores with food. • Other producers are Acacia trees which have many subcategories including the Whistling Thorn, the Umbrella Thorn and the Senegal Gum which are other kinds of Acacia Trees • Other producers are the Candelabra Tree and the Jarrah Tree.

9. Producers cont… The Candelabra Tree The Jarrah Tree This is a type of Eucalyptus Tree which can grow up to 40-50 meters high It can be found widespread through the dry Australian Savanna The Jarrah has learned to adapt to the dry climate by it’s long roots so that in times of drought it can pull the water form deep undergorund and use it to sustain itself • Candelabra trees are found close to the equator and in Africa and the East Indies • The Candelabra has a poisonous white sap in which when coming in contact with skin a blister will form and it can also blind if it touches the eyes • The Candelabra has sharp spines on its branches and along with the poison, it keeps away predators

10. Primary Consumers • The savanna’s primary consumers consist of herbivores, such as elephants, zebras, and koalas • African elephants, also known as savanna elephants are the largest mammals on the earth. They weigh up to 10,000 pounds. • Their diet consists of grasses, fruits, tree leaves, bark, shrubs, and vines. • African elephants can live for about seventy years. They tend to stay in groups of about 10 to 15 elephants. The leaders of these groups are always female. • These animals have a special job in savannas. They eat the shrubs and trees, allowing the grass to grow and grazers live. • Today there are about 150,000 elephants in the world.

11. Primary Consumers cont. Grant’s Zebra Koala Koalas are short, fuzzy marsupials that live in the trees of the Australian savanna. Koalas have rough paws that allow them to keep traction on trees, and not fall. This allows the koalas to hide from predators. These animals do not have a diverse diet. They only eat eucalyptus leaves, which are poisonous to other animals. The koala’s digestive system is immune to these poisonous leaves, allowing these animals to eat as many as they want. • Of the three species of zebra, the Grant’s zebra is the most abundant. • These zebras live in close groups called families. The families are led by a single male and contain about 17 members. • The Grant’s zebra can live for about 28 years. Their black and white stripes protect them from predators. If chased, they can reach up to 40 miles per hour. • Today, there are about 300,000 zebras left in the savannas.

12. Grant’s Zebras Koalas African Elephants

13. Secondary Consumers • In the Savanna are many different kinds of secondary consumers, some are hyenas, anteater, wild dog, bat, birds, insects, reptiles such as snakes • Hyenas can be found in Africa and the spotted hyena is the most common while the Brown hyena is both shy and nocturnal, which lives primarily in the dry areas of Africa • The secondary consumers can be found where ever the herds of the herbivores are and they can be found where there is the best wild grass

14. anteater BAT Striped Hyena Wild Dog Brown Hyena

15. Top Consumers • The top consumers include caracal and lion as well as other cats, such as cheetahs and leopards. • The caracal can be found in the Veld Grassland in South Africa, and in central Africa and India. • The caracal lives in solidarity and its life span is about 17 years. • These animals are nocturnal. They hunt smaller mammals, such as rabbits and porcupines, or even larger mammals like sheep, young antelope or deer. • The caracal is only hunted by man. In some areas, they have become endangered. They are protected in 10 African countries, but there are no laws protecting them in 6.

16. Top Consumers cont. • The lion is the most powerful predator of the savanna, located in the savanna of Africa south of the Sahara and a small area in Asia. • Their diet consists of gazelles, buffalo, zebras and many other small to medium sized mammals. • They are the only cats to live in prides, or a community containing 4 to 40 members. • The lion is a very crucial part of the food chain. When it kills an animal and is done eating, the scavengers eat the leftovers.

17. Caracals Lions

18. Decomposers • Some decomposers includes the Hyenas, dingoes, vultures, and long-legged marabou storks and especially insects (worms. Maggots, flies) • The storks can be seen along with the vultures high above the savanna looking for prey • Insects can be seen on a dead and decaying animal and cleans the carcass of it’s flesh • They are the cleaners of the Earth

19. DECOMPOSERS!

20. Human Impacts • In many parts of the African savannas, humans have started grazing their cattle and goats on the land. • This causes the grasses to be completely eaten. With no vegetation, the animals begin to die. • The savanna will then turn into a desert. Each year, the Sahara desert gains huge areas of the savanna due to overgrazing and farming. • Hunting the animals of the savannas have caused many of the species to become endangered. Some of these species have been protected by laws, but others remain to be killed because of humans hunting them.

21. Works Cited • http://www.bioexpedition.com/savanna-biome.html • http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/grasslands.php • http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/savanna.htm • http://mindrelief.net/savanna.html • http://www.africacapital.ca/pic/zebra.jpg • http://edu.glogster.com/media/2/11/47/83/11478364.jpg • http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-131082022.html • http://wikitravel.org/upload/shared/9/94/Savanna_Sunrise_by_bredgur.jpg • http://library.thinkquest.org/C0113340/text/biomes/biomes.grassland.tropical.animals.html • http://www.junglephotos.com/africa/afscenery/savanna/savannanathist.shtml • http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/savanna_animal_page.htm