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What Is a Savanna?
A savanna is a large flat area of tropical grassland. There are savannas in
lots of different countries. They are found near to the equator.
It is hot all year round in the African savanna. It only has two seasons:
summer and winter.
The winter is the dry season. It doesn’t rain at all during winter.

The summer is the wet season.

This is when it rains.
The largest savannas in
the world are in Africa.
Equator

? What is the equator?

Where Is Africa?
Africa is a continent made up of 54 countries.

Which continent do you live

? on?
Where Are the African
Savannas?
Nearly half of Africa is
covered with savanna.
The Serengeti is one of
the most well-known
savannas in Africa. It is
on the border between
Tanzania and Kenya. Keny
a
Serengeti National
Park
Tanzani
a

Serengeti National Park

Plants and Animals
There are very few trees that grow in the
savanna. The ones that do grow are very
spaced out.
Lots of time can pass without rain so the
plants here need to survive without a lot
water.
Some plants store water in their stems or
trunks. Others have very long roots to reach
water deep down in the soil.
There are lots of different
animals that live in the
savanna. They often have to
travel a long way to find water
to drink. They drink from pools
called ‘watering holes’.
Lion
Lions are powerful hunters.
They live in groups, called
‘prides’. A male lion is the head
of the pride.
Male lions have a mane of hair
around their head. This protects
them during fights with other
lions.
It is the job of the male lion to
protect its herd. The female
lions hunt together for food for
the pride. They also look after Did you
the lion cubs. know? A lion’s roar can be
Lions are most active at night, heard up to five miles
when it is much cooler. During away!
the day, they spend most of
their time resting in the shade.
Thomson’s Gazelle
Gazelles are very fast. They
are preyed on by many
other animals so they rely
on their speed to escape.
They sleep for just five
minutes at a time, for a
total of one hour per day.
They sometimes form
herds with zebras and
wildebeest.

Did you
know?
Some types of gazelle
‘honk’ when they’re
nervous!
Hippo
Hippos spend most of their
time in the water during the
day. This is to keep them
cool. They come onto land
at night to eat.
A hippo’s eyes, nose and
ears are all on top of its
head. This helps them to
see, breathe and hear when
the rest of their body is
underwater.
Hippos mostly eat grass butDid you
they have been known to know? A hippo’s mouth can
eat small animals too.
open up to a metre
wide!
Giraffe
There are four different
types of giraffe – northern,
southern, Masai and northern
reticulated. Each type has giraffe
a different pattern
on their skin.
Giraffes are the tallest southern
living animal. They have giraffe
very long legs and necks.
This helps them to reach
the leaves on high tree Masai
branches. giraffe
Did you
know?
Giraffes
sleep
standing reticulated
giraffe
up!
Warthog
Warthogs are a type of pig.

A male warthog is a boar.

A female is a sow. Baby
warthogs are piglets.
They have four big tusks
which they use for
defence. However, they
will often choose to avoid a
predator by running away
or hiding in a burrow,
rather than fighting. Did you
know?
Warthog’s can run 30 miles
per hour. That’s as fast as a
car!
Zebra
Zebras are a type of wild horse. They
are a different species to horses you
would see on a farm.
Just like humans have unique
fingerprints, each zebra has its own
unique set of stripes.
Zebras live in herds, which helps to
protect them from predators, such as
lions.
Did you
There are three species of zebra. They know?
each have different stripe patterns. A herd of
zebras is called
a ‘dazzle’.
Grevy’s mountain plains
zebra zebra zebra
Hamadryas Baboon
Hamadryas baboons are a
type of monkey. They live in
large groups.
Hamadryas baboons have
special areas in their cheeks
that stretch to hold food. This
lets them quickly store food
until they find a safe place to
eat it.
They’re very good climbers
but they spend most of their
time on you
Did the ground.
know?
Baboons yawn
when they are
angry!
Elephant
African elephants are the
largest living animal on
land. They can grow to
be three metres tall.
Elephants eat roots,
grasses, fruit, leaves and
tree bark. They are so
strong, they can push
down trees to reach their
leaves.
Elephants are very
intelligent and have the Did you
biggest brain in the know?
animal world. Elephants are so
heavy, they can’t
jump!
Steenbok Antelope
Steenbok antelopes have
very large ears and eyes.
This means they have
excellent hearing and
eyesight.
Steenboks eat leaves,
grasses, berries and seeds.
They rarely drink and get
all the water they need
from their food.
When a predator is nearby,
steenboks will stay Did you
completely still in the know?
grass. If a predator gets
There are 91 different
too close, they will run
species of antelope!
away very quickly.
Wildebeest
Wildebeests are a type of
antelope. They live in huge
herds. They migrate
(travel) hundreds of miles
every year
to find fresh grass to eat.
Both male and female
wildebeest have horns.
They use these to defend
themselves.
Wildebeest are fast, which
means they can often Did you
outrun predators. know?
Every year, more than 1 million
wildebeests migrate across Africa
together!
“Blue Wildebeest” by Derek Keats is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Cheetah
Cheetahs are the fastest
land animal. They can
reach 70 miles per hour in
three seconds. That’s the
same speed cars travel on
a motorway!
Cheetahs get tired quickly,
though, and can only run
at this speed for about
20 seconds.
To save energy, cheetahs
stalk their prey very Did you
carefully before jumping know?
out and chasing them. Unlike all other big
cats, cheetahs don’t
roar!
Spotted Hyena
Although they look like
dogs, hyenas are more
closely related to cats.
Hyenas can hunt but they
are mostly scavengers.
This means they pick up
the food left behind by
other animals.
When they do hunt, they
work together in a pack. It
takes a group of 10 to 25
hyenas to catch a zebra!
Did you
know?
A spotted hyena’s call
sounds like a human
laughing!
Rhino
There are two types of rhino in black rhino
Africa – black and white. Black
rhinos are much smaller than
white rhinos.
Black and white rhinos both have
two horns on the front of their
face.
Although they are incredibly big,
they only eat plants.
white rhino
Females and baby rhinos live in
small herds. Adult males tend to
Didonyou
live their own.
know?
Both black and white
rhinos are actually grey in
colour!
“Black Rhino” by Ikiwaner is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Birds

The grey crowned crane is a large bird

with long legs and a long neck. They
have a ‘crown’ of golden feathers on
their heads. They like to rest in water or
high up in trees.
A male and female crane will dance
together!

The common ostrich is the

tallest and heaviest bird in the
world. Although they are birds,
they can’t fly. They can run very
fast though!
An ostrich holds its wings
outstretched when it runs to help
“Grey Crowned Crane” by Ray in Manilla is licensed under CC BY 2.0

it to balance.
Reptiles
African rock pythons are the largest snake in
Africa. They live in open areas, near water.
African rock pythons can grow to almost seven
metres long! They eat small and large animals,
from rats to antelopes.
Nile crocodiles are dangerous predators.
They can grow to almost five metres long.
They like to live near large areas of water,
where they can easily hide from their prey.
A Nile crocodile’s only predator is humans.

Mwanza flat-headed rock agamas are a type

of lizard. They are known as the ‘Spider-Man
lizard’ because of their colours. When threatened
by a predator, they can change their colour to
brown so they blend in with their surroundings.
“Nile Crocodile Basking” by Steve Slater, “African Rock Python” by s9-4pr, “Flat-Headed Rock Agama” by Chmehl are
licensed under CC BY 2.0
Insects
African flower beetles are big beetles that
come in lots of different colours. Male flower
beetles have a large horn on their head. They’re
often found on flowers looking for pollen and
nectar.

There are more species of termites in African

savannas than anywhere else in the world.
Termites live in big groups called ‘colonies’.
They build huge dirt mounds that can be over
a metre tall.

Dung beetles like to eat animal poo! When

they find animal dung, they shape it into a ball
to roll it away. They then bury it to eat later or to
lay their eggs in.
Protecting the Savannas
Unfortunately, there are lots of things
threatening the African savannas, such as
farming and hunting.
Luckily, there are many people who are
fighting to save them. Special groups are
working hard to track endangered animals to
protect them from hunters.
There are also national parks that have laws
stopping people from farming and hunting
there.
With the help of these people, we can protect
these special habitats and their animals for
?
many What
years!else do you think
people can do to help A conservationist at Lewa
protect the savannas? Wildlife Conservancy in
Kenya