Biome and Ecosystem Project

Biome and Ecosystem Project By Madison Radford African Savanna

Biome: African Savanna • Climate- During rainy season , beginning in May and ending in November they get 15-25 inches of rain a month. Then dry season occurs more than 7 months a year from October to March. The dry season comes in the low sun period and the wet season comes in the high sun period. They have a very wet-dry tropical climate. • Location- Latitude 15 degrees North, 30 degrees South, Longitude 15 degrees East, and 40 degrees West. In Southern, Western, and Central parts of Africa. • Habitats- Grasslands, Arid Savanna, Moist Savanna, Woodland, Thickets, and Forests. • Organisms- Plants~ The River Bushwillow is about 6 meters tall, although they can grow to be trees with a massive, spreading out crown with branches sometimes leaning at weird angles. The Manketti Tree prefers hot and dry climates with low amounts of rain. It also prefers to grow on wooded hills or sand dunes. Animals~ The Lion is unusually social compared to other big cats. A pride of lions consist of related females and offspring and a small number of adult males. The Nigriceps Ants relationship isn’t as symbiotic as it was thought and turns out o be more of a parasitic relationship. The tree these special ants prefer is the Whistling Thorn Acacia.

The Ecosystem of the African Savanna Includes: • Land Features • Water Features • Different Habitats & • Organisms

Land Features • Rolling Grasslands dotted with trees is one way to define an African Savanna. • The African Savanna is also known as a thornbush savanna. • In this savanna there are many plants such as: Acacia Sengal, Candelabra Tree, Jackalberry Tree, and Elephant Grass. • The Serengeti Plains are grass savannas that have very dry but nutrient-rich volcanic sand. Around 2 million large herbivores live in this savanna.

Water Features • Komati River- The Komati River enters the sea 15 miles of Maputo. Actually, the Portuguese named the river’s low reaches the Rio des Reijs, or the “river of rice”. • Orange River- This is the longest river in South Africa. It passes the southern edge of the Kalahari Desert and winds through the Namib Desert before draining into the Atlantic Ocean. It forms a border between South Africa and Namibia. It is about 1,300 miles long. • Komati Gorge- it contains a great diversity of flora and fauna, including very large mammalian species. There are several kinds of discrete types of habitats present, including riparian zone, bluff habitat, thorn bushveld, and highveld grassland.

Different Habitats • Grasslands- Vegetation is dominated by grass species with many bulbous plants. Shrubs and trees are restricted by fires and frost to protect kloofs and rocky areas. They are usually found at high altitudes or high latitudes. They are often characterized by the presence of many wetlands. • Forest- Typically found in the tropical rainforests of Central Africa and some parts of the southern parts of East Africa. • Thickets- Parts of the arid savanna in Namibia and the Valley Bushveld in the south-eastern parts of South Africa. • Woodland - up to 200mTypically Miombo woodlands found in central southern Africa such as northern Botswana, Zimbabwe, northern Namibia and most of Zambia.

Organisms • Plants~ The River Bushwillow is about 6 meters tall, although they can grow to be trees with a massive, spreading out crown with branches sometimes leaning at weird angles. The Manketti Tree prefers hot and dry climates with low amounts of rain. It also prefers to grow on wooded hills or sand dunes. • Animals~ The Lion is unusually social compared to other big cats. A pride of lions consist of related females and offspring and a small number of adult males. The Nigriceps Ants relationship isn’t as symbiotic as it was thought and turns out o be more of a parasitic relationship. The tree these special ants prefer is the Whistling Thorn Acacia.

Food Chain • Producer- Grasses • First-Level Consumer- Antelope • Second-Level Consumer- Lion

Antelope • Description- All antelope, long legs and thin. Strong muscles in the legs meet the body of the leveraged offering antelope, stride length and leg speed. Despite the antelopes are good jumpers, are not the biggest climbers, especially compared with the sheep and goats. But some do not have good balance that is located at the end of their helmets. • Habitat- These unique creatures are usually found in grasslands, plains, and even some deserts. • Adaptations- It has very long, slender legs made for jumping, pouncing, shifting quickly, and speed. Also it has smaller hooves so it can easily balance itself on uneven surfaces such as rocks and hills. Smaller antlers allow them to hide easier in their environment as well as their brown oat fur allows them to camouflage in tall grasses. • Food- Several types of grass and leaves. • Predators- The main species that eat antelope are lions, cheetah, and leopards. • Protection- Grazing animals, like the antelope, often feed in herds. When a predator attacks, the animals scatter and run in different directions which confuses the predator and allows the animals to escape. Some animals never venture too far from their home in underground dens or thick vegetation and can quickly hide when danger approaches. Many animals have keen senses of sight, smell, and hearing so that they can detect danger and escape. Some animals have horns or antlers to fight off predators. Some animals are active only at night when it is harder for predators to find them. • Communication- Almost all antelopes are social animals, living in groups called herds. They communicate with each other using a varied array of sounds. For example, dik-diks whistle when alarmed, warning animals of other species of the danger as well. Generally, though, sight is a much more common form of communication than sound among antelopes. An antelope's mood is indicated by its posture and movement. When excited or alarmed, most medium-sized species of antelope bounce up and down on all four legs, keeping them stretched out straight. This behavior, known as pronking or stotting, acts as an alarming display. Some biologists theorize that stotting also sends a message to predators, showing that individual antelopes are fit and alert, and therefore not worth pursuing. • Young- The baby antelope looks like a regular antelope but much smaller and slimmer and sounds much different. Grown antelope care for their young by sticking by them until they are old enough to protect themselves.

Antelope (continued) • Status- Humans should be more concerned about antelope because lots of people hunt antelope for money. With that being said antelope will soon be endangered or they won’t be endangered but definitely be a big drop in the population numbers everywhere. • People- The way we can help antelope is by being more careful on how many antelope are being hunted and killed. Most people just kill the antelope just to hang it as decoration, but sooner or later it is really going to harmed the population. • Questions- (Didn’t find any info)

Lions • Habitat- They are now only found in the Sahara Desert and in parts of Southern and Eastern Africa. They like to live in grassy open plains as it is easier to catch their prey. • Adaptations- One of a lion’s adaptations is their golden brown fur, it helps them blend into their surroundings on the plains. Also they have good eye sight for hunting at night because they have a reflective lens inside of their eyes. As well as their good eye sight they have their acute sense of smell. Of course there are many more, but are just a few of all the others. • Predators- Lions have no real predators. Only if you count humans how hunt for their fur but that doesn’t really count as a predator. Healthy lions really have no predators. • Protection- Lions protect themselves with their powerful strength and bodies. They live in a prides which allows them to rely on their members for protection. • Communication- Lions communicate using sound and body language. The lions roar is very loud and jarring. You will also see lions rubbing against each other showing affection or fighting to prove their prowess. • Young- What do lion cubs look like? Well, the basically look like grown lionesses. The males are they same color and everything except they don’t have their mane grown in yet. The females just look like regular grown lionesses except in a smaller version. How does the grown lion care for its young? They hunt for them, hide them, share their food, and are basically like a human mother. For the first 3 months lions have milk. After that their introduced to meat. How are the cubs similar and different than grown lions? Similarity~ The have the same color of course but also the same hair length. Their hair doesn’t grow or shorten as they grow. Difference~ Males: their size, cubs have no manes, and cubs don’t hunt for food. Females: size and same the cubs don’t hunt for meals. • Status- (Didn’t find any info) • Description- The lion has 8 cm long teeth, they are the second biggest feline, the color is usually a light buff to yellowish, reddish, or dark ochraceous, and their stomach is a lighter color to some degree. Male adult lions weigh about 330-550 pounds (150-250kg) and females 260- 400 pounds. (120-182kg) ( lions in south Africa are 5% heavier than in East Africa) The length (including head) for males is usually 170-250cm.(5ft 7in.- 8ft. 2in.) and females is 140- 175cm (4ft. 7in.- 5ft. 9in.) The length of their tail may very from 2ft to 4ft, and is black. (except for white lions, those guys are really cool) The males have manes, which is a bunch of hair stuff that goes from around the face and ears to their shoulders, they can be blond to black and darken over time. • People- We can help lions by not killing them for decoration or for their fur. The fur was meant to be on them and stay on them.

Maddie’s Mini Quiz!!!!!!!! 1. What is the longest river in South Africa? A. The Komati River B. The Crocodile River C. The Orange River D. The Caledon river 2. Name one of the three habitats of the African savanna. 3. True/False? The antelope eats the lion. 4. True/False? Lions are not very social compared to other cats. 5. Name one of the CONSUMERS of the food chain.

Answers • 1. C • 2. Grassland, Woodland, or Forest. • 3. False • 4. False • Lion or antelope

Food Web • The Producers - the trees, shrubs and grass. • The Primary Consumers – the zebras and elephants. • The Secondary Consumers – the cheetah, hyena. • The Scavengers – the termites, vultures and hyena. • The Decomposers or Detrivores – mushrooms, insects and microorganisms.

Extras!!!!!!!! • Nigriceps Ant • River Bushwillow • Lions

Extras!!!!!!! • Chacma Baboon Zebras • Cheetahs African Dogs

Biome and Ecosystem Project