Temperate grasslands are characterized as having grasses as the dominant vegetation.
Temperate grassland. Temperate grasslands are characterized as having grasses as the dominant vegetation. Trees and large shrubs are absent. Temperatures vary more from summer to winter, and the amount of rainfall is less in temperate grasslands than in savannas. Temperate grasslands are a division of a larger biome grouping of grasslands that includes tropical savannas. Both biome types are characterized by a dominance of grasses, yet temperate grasslands differ significantly from savannas. Grasslands are characterized as lands dominated by grasses rather than large shrubs or trees. In the Miocene and Pliocene Epochs, which spanned a period of about 25 million years, mountains rose in western North America and created a continental climate favorable to grasslands. Temperate grasslands and savannas are two types of grassland biomes. Like savannas, temperate grasslands are areas of open grassland with very few trees. Temperate grasslands, however are located in colder climate regions and receive less precipitation on average than savannas. 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 ferrets. 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). Temperatures in temperate grasslands vary according to the season. In winter, temperatures can plummet to well below 0 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas. In summer, temperatures can reach above 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperate grasslands receive low to moderate precipitation on average per year (20-35 inches). Temperate grasslands are located north of the Tropic of Cancer (23.5 degrees North) and south of the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5 degrees South). The major temperate grasslands include the veldts of Africa, the pampas of South America, the steppes of Eurasia, and the plains of North America.
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/grasslands.php http://www.thewildclassroom.com/biomes/grasslands.html http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/grasslands.php http://biology.about.com/od/landbiomes/a/aa042106a.htm http://www.defenders.org/grasslands/temperate-grasslands http://kids.nceas.ucsb.edu/biomes/grassland.html http://biology.about.com/od/landbiomes/a/aa042106a.htm http://www.defenders.org/grasslands/temperate-grasslands
what is a temperate grassland