What Is a Grassland?
Grasslands are found across
the world and are known by
different names in different
places: in the
A grassland is USA, theyspace
an open are
called
coveredprairies; African
in grass. Usually,
grasslands
grasslands are
formcalled
when there
savannahs;
isn’t enoughSouth
waterAmericans
for a forest
call them
to grow pampas;
but enoughsome parts
so that a
of Europe
desert and Asia
doesn’t [Link] them
steppes.
Types of Grassland
There are two main types of
grasslands:
• Temperate
Tropical grasslands
grasslands – –
These grasslands have a hot
summers
wet and aand
dry cold
season.
winters.
The
The grass
range of temperatures
in a temperate
grassland has
throughout thedeep
yearroots
is
and the than
smaller soil istemperate
good for
growing crops.
grasslands. Savannas
Grasslands
in
acrossare
Africa theexamples
USA, Europeof
and Asiagrasslands.
tropical are temperate.
Temperate Grasslands
Grass is the most common plant found in temperate grasslands.
There
Because
are different
the soil intypes
temperate
of grass
grasslands
dependingis on
fullthe
of nutrients,
location of
Other plants that grow in temperate grasslands include
crops,
the grassland.
such as wheat,
Types ofryegrass
andinclude
oats, grow
pampas
well on
grass,
temperate
buffalo
sunflowers, clover and different kinds of herbs.
grass and purple needlegrass.
grasslands.
The height each type of grass
grow to depends on the amount of rain an area receives.
Temperate Grasslands
North American grasslands are home to animals such as buffalo,
prairie dogs, coyotes and wolves.
prairie
buffalo coyote wolf
dog
Temperate grasslands in Europe and Asia are the habitats of
foxes,
wild boar, hedgehogs and squirrels.
hedgeho
fox wild boar squirrel
g
Threats to Temperate
Grasslands
Because the soil in temperate
grasslands is fertile (good for
growing crops), lots of it is used for
farming. Pesticides used to remove
insects that eat crops can be
harmful to other living things.
Climate change causes huge
differences in rainfall. Some
grasslands could be destroyed by
flooding and others by drought.
As cities and towns grow, more
buildings are being placed on
grasslands. This leads to a loss of
habitat for plants and animals.
Tropical Grasslands
Plants growing in tropical
grasslands are specially adapted to
survive. Most of them have tap
roots. This is when one long, thick
root grows downwards and other
small roots then branch off from it.
The long root is able to reach water
lying far under the ground.
Trees growing in tropical
grasslands have thick trunks to
store water. They also have thick
barks to protect themselves from
animals. During the dry season,
there are often fires in tropical
grasslands. Thick barks protect
trees from fire damage.
Tropical Grasslands
Some animals living in tropical
grasslands are herbivores and eat
the long grass that grows there.
These include zebras (African
grasslands), capybaras (South
American grasslands) and
wallabies (Australian grasslands).
capybara
Tropical grasslands are also the
habitat of carnivores, who prey on
(eat) the herbivores. The most
well-known of these creatures are
those found on African savannahs,
such as lions, cheetahs and
hyenas.
wallaby
