Tropical Savanna

1. Tropical Savanna Claire bear Goodin, Savannah banana Haberman, Katie spider Snyder

2. Meteorology • Ever been to the Tropical Savanna? Probably not. So you are probably unaware of the diverse climate that encompasses the biome. The Savanna is a hot, seasonally dry, grassland with few scattered trees. Temperature fluctuates only slightly and averages around 78 degrees Fahrenheit. Wet season temp. is about 85 degrees and dry season is relatively 70 degrees. Yearly average precipitation is 20-40 inches. Only about 4 inches occur during dry season. • Wet season is from October to March and dry season is from April to September.

3. Human Influences • Fires are a common occurrence in the Savanna. It is evoked by heat, wind, lightning, and seasonal leaf fall during the dry season. • Poachers are also a monotonous influence on fires because of the demand for hide, riches, meat, and game. They burn down tall grasses in order to obtain visual of their prey. • They also burn down tall grasses in order to establish new ,fresh, green grass and produce crops during the wet season.

4. Botany • Common plants: • Baobab- lives for several thousand years. It is leafless for nine months of the year. • Candelabra Tree- the branches all grow from one trunk. It is posionous to animals that try to feed off of it. Capable of incapacitating human eye sight. • Elephant grass- Tall grass that grows along lakes and rivers. It feeds swamp and reservoir animals. • Jackal Berry tree- grows on termite mounds; the mounds provide the tree with erected soil and a source of moisture. In return the roots provide protection of the termites who don’t consume it. This is an example of a mutualistic relationship. • Umbrella thorn acacia-Most recognizable of the plant features. Grows in unusually harsh climate for most plants. Very dry rocky soil.

5. Botany • Plants in the savanna obtained special qualities through evolution that have let them easily adapt to dry climate. They have long roots that suck all the moisture out of the ground. They grow thick bark to protect themselves from annual fires. They also have trunks that are convenient for storing water. Trees only grow in the wet season. • Facts: • -roots are occasionally used as deworming remedies for dogs • -gum exuded by the plants contain a substance that prevents hot glue from setting while it cools.

6. Geography • Biome characterized by tall grasses and occasional trees. Savannas can result from either climate, soil conditions, animals, and agricultural practices. Humans create savannas by burning the grasslands. Large animals turn forest into savannas by stripping bark from trees, knocking them over, and walking on the tree seedlings. • These biomes can be found between tropical rain forest and desert biome. South America (Brazil, Columbia, Venezuela) Also found in many parts of Africa like Kenya, Ethiopia, Congo and Somalia.

7. Zoology Abundances of wild life are present in the Tropical Savanna. Animals such as: -lions-wart hogs-giraffe-Brown hyena-black rhino-elephants. They inhabit the savanna and roam across the wide open grasslands in a long search for the salvation of water. During the dry season when the climate is harsh, herds of animals migrate to watering holes to survive. There, they also feed of surrounding animals or the moist fresh grass.