Savanna Ecosystem

What Is a Savanna Ecosystem?

Word of the Week

Migration

Migration is the act of an animal traveling from one location to another, usually at a specific time of year.


Animals on the savanna migrate to follow the seasonal rains!

Species Spotlight

Common Warthog

Phacochoerus africanus

The common warthog is a wild pig native to the savannas of Africa. Like other pig species, warthogs are omnivores! During the wet season, they will drop down onto their tough elbows to reach grasses and other low plants. This is also the season when worms and bugs are available, which warthogs will happily feed on. When the dry season arrives and food becomes scarce, they eat roots and bulbs. 


The warthog is quite a large animal; males can reach more than 300-lbs, which is about the same weight as a female lion. Warthogs spend time in deep burrows that they often steal from aardvarks. Because they don't have thick fur to keep them warm in the winter, they will line burrows with grass to keep them insulated. They often enter burrows backward, which allows them to burst out tusks first if they need to defend themselves or their babies! Though warthogs have unusual friendships with animals like mongooses, they are typically not to be messed with.

Conservation Corner

Community-Based Conservation

Protecting the African Savanna

Imagine that you've spent your whole life living on the African savanna. You're family has protected your crops from elephants and your goats from lions for generations. But now, scientists from the other side of the world say that we must protect the elephants and lions, which means the crops and goats will suffer. Your family doesn't want to hurt elephants or lions, but you depend on your crops and goats for food and money. 


This is how conservation was done for a long time, but in the 1980s, a switch towards community-based conservation was started. Community-based conservation is the practice of working within local communities to support the needs of the people while encouraging sustainable change. Instead of scientists saying, "You must let the lions eat your goats," scientists are teaching the community about the importance of lions and helping them build enclosures that will protect their goats from lions. Scientists are building schools to teach science and conservation in return for community members assisting in conservation efforts. Through community-based conservation, both wildlife and local communities are benefiting.


Check out the link below to learn more about some community conservation projects in Africa!

Keep Learning

Savanna Solutions Identification

Identify which physical traits and behaviors would be helpful in a savanna ecosystem.

Savanna Solutions Printable

Savanna Challenges

Savanna Adaptations

Choose 1 (or all 3!) of the animals listed below, read about their adaptations, and complete the chart by describing 4 adaptations that helps that animals survive on the African savanna.

Glossary

Abiotic

A part of an ecosystem that is nonliving.

Biotic

A living organism.

Closed Canopy

A region of forest or woodland where the tree tops touch or overlap and shade the ground below.

Dormant

A state of reduced activity used by plants and animals when environmental conditions are challenging.

Drought

A period of time with very little rainfall.

Ecosystem

An area of the planet filled with living and nonliving things that interact.

Grassland

An ecosystem dominated by grasses with little to no trees or shrubs.

Habitat

An area where a plant or animal lives.

Migration

The process of an animal moving from one location to another based on the season or environmental conditions.

Open Canopy

A region of forest or woodland where the tree tops do not touch or overlap.

Savanna

A type of ecosystem dominated by grasses and sparse trees and seasonal rainfall.

Transpiration

The process of water vapor escaping from leaves and stems through small holes.

Woodland

A small ecosystem characterized by a low-density of trees and other woody plants.

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