Grasses (Poaceae), however sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) families can also be found.
Biological diversity (biodiversity) refers to a broad spectrum of types and levels of biological variation. One of the ways scientists quantify Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity is by classifying vegetation into large, regional ecological units by dominant vegetative pattern, better known as biomes. The grassland biome covers about one-quarter of the Earth’s land surface and in North America grasslands account for about 15 percent of the continent. LOCATION: The name for this biome, temperate grasslands, is a great description for what it is like here. The most important plants in this biome are grasses! Temperate grasslands have some of the darkest, richest soils in the world (not in wealth, but in nutrients). Trees and large shrubs are rarely found in grassland areas. There are many species of grasses that live in this biome, including, purple needlegrass, wild oats, foxtail, ryegrass, and buffalo grass. Many animals munch on these grasses, but they survive because the growth point on the grasses is very close to the ground. Grassland habitats are an increasi ngly rare site in New Hampshire. More than 70 species of wildlife use these open areas of fields and wildflowers to meet their needs for food, cover, or breeding. Most of today's grasslands are the result of land clearing, and require maintenance. Vegetation growing in grassland habitats may be tall (over four feet), short (less than 6 inches), or a combination. Vegetation height plays an important role in determining which wildlife species will use the habitat. A common trait of all grassland habitats is that they contain few (if any) trees or shrubs. This is why there is such diversity with animals and plants living in one grassland biome but not others. The most common types of plant life in the Grassland biome include Buffalo Grass, Crazy Weed, and Wild Indigos. Such plants offer plenty of food sources for various animals that live in this biome.  In grasslands and meadows of Eastern Europe and Argentina, such plants reign supreme. A 527-square-foot (49-square-meter) patch of Czech grassland contained 131 vascular plant species—the most cataloged. A patch of Argentine grassland that's only 10 square feet (1 square meter) contained 89 species. (Read about threats to grasslands.) Grassland Diversity a Mystery The team hopes its results will encourage ecologists to look more closely at why only two kinds of ecosystems—tropical rain forests and grasslands—win out in terms of species diversity. These biomes include the tropical forest, savanna, desert, chaparral, grassland, temperate forest, taiga or boreal forest, and tundra. Each biome is distinctive due to the amount of annual precipitation, number of frost-free days and other physical and biological factors. The grassland biome covers about one-quarter of the Earth’s land surface and in North America grasslands account for about 15 percent of the continent. Ecological processes such as fire and precipitation help to maintain the unique character of grassland Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae), however sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica. Grasslands are found in most ecoregions of the Earth. For example, there are five terrestrial ecoregion classifications (subdivisions) of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome (' ecosystem '), which is one of eight terrestrial ecozones of the Earth's surface.  A grassland near Cluj-Napoca, Romania, has the highest number of plants in a square foot (0.1 square meter). Photograph courtesy Juergen Jürgen Dengler, sorry tropical rain. Forests grasslands have the most plant—species at least when the area studied is smaller than a few parking. spaces (Read about threats to grasslands.) Grassland Diversity a Mystery The team hopes its results will encourage ecologists to look more closely at why only two kinds of ecosystems—tropical rain forests and grasslands—win out in terms of species diversity. Animals. Temperate grasslands have a low diversity of wildlife, but a high abundance of wildlife. In North America the dominant grazing animals are bison and pronghorn. Rodents include pocket gophers and prairie dogs. Carnivores include wolves, coyotes, swift foxes, badgers and black-footed ferret
http://www.ducks.org/conservation/grasslands/biodiversity-in-the-grassland-biome http://kids.nceas.ucsb.edu/biomes/grassland.html http://extension.unh.edu/Grassland-Habitats http://www.bioexpedition.com/grassland-biome/ http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/03/120320-grasslands-rain-forests-species-diversity-environment/ http://www.ducks.org/conservation/grasslands/biodiversity-in-the-grassland-biome https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grassland http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/03/120320-grasslands-rain-forests-species-diversity-environment/ http://www.defenders.org/grasslands/temperate-grasslands
what kind of diversity is in grassland