Temperate Grassland

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Temperate Grassland

• By Teresa Chan and Andrea Higdon

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Characteristics

• Climate - cold summers and hot winters, moderate
  precipitation mostly in form of snow
• Landscape wide, open space
• Vegetation - low growing grasses, few trees or
  shrubs (ex.-buffalo grass, cacti, sagebrush,
  perennial grasses, sunflowers, clovers, and wild
  indigos)
• Animal Life - many large herbivores such as
  bison, gazelles, zebras, rhinoceroses, and wild
  horses carnivores include lions and wolves

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Location
http//www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/k4/biomes/Bovervie
w4.html
North America, Eurasia, South America, Southern
Africa, Australia
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Human Impacts

• Fires started by humans spread quickly and
  destroy land
• Land used for farming and grazing due to rich
  soil
• Dust storms (dust bowl)
• Overgrazing salt build-ups make wasteland

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Endangered Species

• Prairie milkweed
• Plowed for grazing, crops, power plants
• Introduced species such as Kentucky bluegrass
  take over
• Buffalo and bison hunted near extinction in 19th
  century
• Causes cut of Plains Indian food supply and
  provide for cattle grazing, clear way for
  railroads, commercial enterprise
• Only a few hundred remain

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Interesting facts

• Different regional terms for temperate grasslands
• North America- Prairie
• Eurasia- Steppe
• South America- Pampa
• Africa- Veld

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References

• http//www.greenscreen.org/articles_sr/plants_anim
  als/Plants20Endangered20Plants.pdf
• http//www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/grass
  lands.php
• http//www.thewildclassroom.com/biomes/grasslands.
  html
• http//www.defenders.org/wildlife_and_habitat/habi
  tat/grasslands.php
• http//www.mbgnet.net/sets/grasslnd/index.htm