Grasslands – Chapter 8

By Jeremy, Dan DiVico, Will, & Tiffani

Definition of a Grassland

• A grassland is an ecosystem in which there is too much water to form a desert, but not enough water to support a forest.

Basic Grass land climate.Grass lands can be compared to deserts climate but just a bit more

wet.

There are places known as Desert-Grassland Boundaries, these areas are between deserts and grasslands where there is just enough rain to have grass grow.

Since grasslands rely on an abiotic factor (water) for it to be a grassland it can change suddenly into a desert at any time.

Deserts may also turn into grass lands

OrganismsA number of different factors affect the organisms living in the

grasslands.

The most significant factor is rainfall. Grasslands thrive on rain and without it, they cannot evolve.

Grass fires also help the grasslands. Without them, the forests will overgrow and while it destroys the trees, it leaves the grasses

unharmed.

The grass fires also get rid of dead and unnecessary grasses.

● Although the amount of rain is important to grassland ecosystems, the time when it rains is also very important.

● Rainy seasons & Drought seasons: cycles of heavy rain followed by long periods of little or no rain

● This is what determines the kinds of organisms that live in the grasslands

● grasslands that go months without rain have many plants and trees that has become adapted and drought-resistant

types of Grasslands

●Steppe●Prairie●and Savanna

There are three types of Grasslands there are know as

Biotic & Abiotic Factors

• (Biotic) Grazing animals that roam around the area affect the trees and shrubs that would’ve grown there.

• (Abiotic) The grasslands need water to sustain itself but this is due in part to how much soil is in the area. Some areas have greater areas of soils than others.

• Different grassland areas get more rainfall than others. Some areas get very heavy rain while others rarely get any at all.

Steppe and Prairie basics

Climates

Temperatures ranging from -5° to 30 ° C

The average rainfall is 50 to 75 cm a year but it is possible for them to get twice as much rainfall in a year.

They are subject to high winds and high temperatures, this causes rapid evaporation.

The Beautiful Grasslands

Secondary Succession

Once a community has been cleared of a disturbance, secondary succession is what happens but doesn’t destroy the soil.

Common forms of secondary succession are typically brought on by human interactions, fires and storms.

Subdivided Grasslands

• grasslands around the world vary by climate and types of organisms

• one method to classify grasslands is to divide the grassland into 3 different biomes:

• Steppe

• Prairie

• Savanna

Climate

Not all grassland organisms share the same climate.

The desert-grassland boundary is the area between deserts and grasslands where increased rainfall enables some grasses to grow.

Grasslands do not always stay grasslands. Sometimes, they can even become deserts or vice-versa. Deserts can become grasslands.

Temperate Grasslands

Temperate grasslands are sub-divided into prairies and steppes.

The temperate grasslands has deep & dark soil with fertile uplayers.

It also faces a seasonal drought dealing with fires and mammals who are native to the land.

Plants in Grasslands

Trees and shrubs are not very common in grasslands. They’re quite rare in those areas.

Animals feed on the existing plants such as purple needlegrass, foxtails and wild oats to name a few.

Underground stems and buds cannot easily be destroyed by fires and are more common.

Locations & Interesting Facts• Grassland biomes are normally situated

between a forest and a desert. In fact, grasslands surround every desert in Asia.

• 25% of the Earth is covered by the grassland biome

• There is a grassland biome on each continent with the exception of Antarctica

Interesting Facts Continued

• Tropical grassland biomes are located in the Southern Hemisphere while temperate grassland biomes are located in the Northern Hemisphere.

• The grasses in the tropical grassland biome tend to be taller than that of the temperate because of the constant warm weather and additional rainfall it receives.

• Bison used to rule the grassland biome and roamed by the millions, but during the 1800s settlers began to slaughter them for various reasons.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCXTM7FhxyM

In conclusion...

Grasslands have few trees, are dominated by grass and less than 8% are protected.

Temperate grasslands and tropical grasslands (often called “savannas”) are the two primary types of grasslands.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this visual learning experience.