Wh y Vi si t ?
Fo o d w eb
Inter esting Facts:
- Per iodic fir es, whether they ar e human induced
or occur spontaneously, ar e ver y impor tant to
the gr assland to ensur e that invasive plants do
not take over .
- Ther e is a temper ate gr assland on ever y
continent except Antar ctica so ther e ar e plenty
of places to go to!
- Gr asslands ar e known by many names
depending on wher e they ar e located: the veldts
of Afr ica, the pampas of South Amer ica,the
steppes of Eur asia, and the plains of Nor th
Amer ica.
Thr eats to Temper ate Gr asslands:
Over gr azing by livestock and plowing, conver sion to
agr icultur al lands due to r ich soil (almost ½ of gr asslands
have been conver ted to far mland), lack of fir e and
fr agmentation, and past and pr esent wildlife er adication
(including the bison slaughter of the 1800s and ongoing
pr air ie dog poisoning in Nor th Amer ica’s plains).
Symbiosis:
Temper at e
Mutualism: when two or ganisms wor k together both benefiting the
r elationship. For example a oxpecker r ests on a Afr ican buffalo
Gr assl an d
picking of the par asites fr om its body and the bir d gets to r est. So, find peace in open land!
the buffalo gets par asites off of him, and the oxpecker gets to r est
and gets food easily.
Commensalism: In this r elationship one of the or ganism benefits
while the other stay neutr al. A example would be when the killdeer
bir d r ests on top of a cape buffalo. The cape buffalo pr otects the
killdeer but the killdeer doesn't r eally do anything for the buffalo.
Par asitism: In this r elationship one of the or ganism benefits while
the other is har med. A r eally good example would a tape wor m that
is in side the hosts and takes its nutr ients, and the host ends up
dying fr om lack of nutr ients.
Wor ks Cited:
"Chapter 3 GRASSLANDS OF SOUTH AFRICA."Gr assland of the Wor ld. Web. 22
Apr . 2018.
"Food Web." The Savanna Biome. Web. 22 Apr . 2018.
"The Gr assland Biome." The Gr assland Biome. Web. 26 Apr . 2018. Clio Dakolias
"Red Oat Gr ass 1292." Red Oat Gr ass 1292. Web. 27 Apr .2018. "
"Temper ate Gr asslands Biome." Temper ate Gr asslands Biome. Web. 28 Apr . Apr il 2018
2018.
"Temper ate Gr asslands." Gr asslands. Web. 22 Apr . 2018 C Odd
Woodwar d, Susan L., Dr . "Temper ate Gr asslands." Biodome Of the Wor ld. 2012.
Web. 22 Apr . 2018.
 An i mal s Pl an t s Wh er e Is i t ?
As gr asslands consist pr imar ily of open space, many Many of the plants found within a temper ate gr assland ar e
animals have had to adapt in or der to better conceal per ennials, meaning they sur vive year to year . In the Pr air ie, the
their pr esence fr om pr edator s. Some of these dense r oot system allows plants to sur vive dr oughts and fir es and
adaptations include: becoming noctur nal, living and hold soil in place. The amount of r ainfall affects both the r oot
moving in her ds, and having fur or feather s that blend depth and gr ass height. Tr ees and shr ubs ar e scar ce in the
in with sur r ounding plant life. gr assland ar ea due to the climate. The plants of the the
temper ate gr asslands sur vive due to their gr owth point being
close to the gr ound, and that even though fir es occur , the gr asses
Common Fauna:
and flower s ar e not destr oyed since they have under gr ound
Black Tailed Pr air ie Dog stems and buds. Many of the r oots of pr air ie gr asses r each deep
- They do not
into the soil, absor bing as much moistur e as they can. Pr air ie
gener ally dr ink
water , as they get an gr asses also lose less water due to their nar r ow leaves. Most tem per ate gr asslan ds ar e located in Afr ica, South
abundance of water Am er ica, Hun gar y, Russia, and Nor th Am er ica. Most of
fr om their diet. This
The soft stems of the gr asses allow the gr asses to bend in the
is impor tant because wind, and wind pollination is common to the gr asslands due to the gr asslands exist nor th of the Tr opic of Cancer at
gr asslands ar e 23.5 degr ees nor th in latitude and south of the Tr opic of
typically ver y dr y
exposur e to windy conditions. The r oot systems of the plants
places. pr event animals fr om pulling the r oots out fr om the gr ound. Capr icor n at 23.5 degr ees south in latitude. In Nor th
- They have also Am er ica, tem per ate gr asslands thr ive in the wester n
adapted by living in
par t of the countr y wher e they ar e known as plain s
‘towns’ to pr otect
against pr edator s
Common Flor a: while in South Am er ica, they’r e known as pam pas.
Avena fatua (wild oats)
Bison

Cl i mat e
- have br oad, flat-
topped teeth and
digestive systems
especially adapted to
feed on gr asses Tem per atur es in this biom e var y gr eatly between
sum m er and win ter . The sum m er s ar e hot and the
win ter s ar e cold. Som etim es the tem per atur e is m or e
Coyote
Aster than 10 0 °F (37.8°C). Winter s can be as cold as - 40 °F.
Rain in the tem per ate gr asslan ds usually occur s in the
late spr in g and ear ly sum m er . The year ly aver age is
about 20 - 35 inches (55 - 95 cm ), but m uch of this falls
as snow in the winter .

Pr onghor n
Blazing star s

Other s include: gopher s, zebr as, foxes, and fer r ets

Other s include: r ye gr ass, foxtail, goldenr ods, and wild indigo