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If the rains were to be well distributed throughout the year, many such savannas would turn into tropical forest. Climate is the most important factor in creating a savanna, always found in warm or hot climates where the annual rainfall ranges from 51-127 cm (The rainfall here is confined to four to eight months a year, followed by a spell of drought punctuated with fires. Savannas of one sort or other cover almost half the surface of Africa (about eight million square kilometers, generally in Central Africa), large areas of Australia, South America, and India. (Savannas are grass dominated lands with scattered individual trees). Tropical Grasslands (Savannas): The word ‘Savanna’ is derived from the Caribbean Indian language in which Sabana means forest clearings.
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Seasonal drought and occasional fires have decisive influence on biodiversity. The grasses attain greater heights in wetter than in drier regions. Summers here are hot, winters cold and rainfall moderate, lower indeed than in tropical savanna grasslands (). Summers here are hot, winters cold and rainfall moderate, lower indeed than in tropical savanna grasslands. The ‘ Veldts’ of South Africa, the ‘ Puszta’ of Hungary, the ‘ Pampas’ (Figure 2.2) of Argentina and Uruguay, the and the ‘ Prairies’ (Figure 2.3) of Central North America ‘ Steppes’ (Figure 2.4) of the former Soviet Union, belong to this category. Temperate grasslands: Temperate grasslands are characterized by the general absence of trees and large shrubs. But natural grasslands today have highly decreased for instance the tall grass prairie of Ontario is only three percent of the original extent (Grasslands can be broadly divided into Temperate grasslands and Tropical grasslands or savannas (Figure 2.1). Following the Pleistocene Ice Ages, grasslands expanded in range as hotter and drier climates prevailed worldwide.
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The climate in this region is very cold and dry because there is no nearby ocean to get moisture from winds from the Arctic aren't blocked by any mountains either (In the Miocene and Pliocene Epochs, which spanned a period of about 25 million years, mountains rose in western North America creating a continental climate favoring the spread of grasslands and decline of ancient forests in the interior plains. A large area of grassland that stretches from the Ukraine of Russia all the way to Siberia is known as the Russian and Asian Steppes. In Argentina of South America, with a humid climate, the grasslands are known as Pampas. The Grasslands in the southern hemisphere receive more precipitation and support taller grasses than those in the northern hemisphere. The soils of most natural grasslands are also too thin and dry for trees to survive. Their stems can grow again after being burnt off. Grasses can survive fires because they grow from the bottom instead of the top. The precipitation is so erratic that drought and fire prevent large forests from growing. Natural grassland is a formation in low rainfall areas where the average annual precipitation is normally just enough to support grasses, and in some areas a few trees. Latitude, soil and local climates for the most part determine what kinds of plants grow in particular grassland. Grasslands are of many types, and are associated with all the continents of the world, barring the Antarctica.