Environmental Chapter 8 Test
List three grass land biomes.
1) steppe 2) prairie 3) savanna
What is a grassland?
an ecosystem in which there is more water than is a desert, but not enough water to support a forest.
What is a vertical feeding pattern?
animals eat vegetation at different heights
What is a desert-grassland boundary, and why is it changeable?
because rainfall is an abiotic factor affecting both deserts and grasslands, long-term changes in climate patterns can change the desert-grassland boundary.
Name some behavioral adaptions of animals to the steppe and prairie.
borrowers and grazers mainly live there, hibernating to save energy. coming out at night to escape the heat.
Short, fine blade grasses that grow in clumps.
bunchgrass
Area that supports some grasses, but can become desert if the climate changes.
desert-grassland boundary
Name some animals that exhibit a vertical feeding pattern.
giraffe and wildebeest
What is the most common organism living in the grasslands?
grass
Biome that receives more rain than a desert, but not enough to support a forest.
grasslands
What is a steppe?
grasslands of short bunchgrasses that get less than 50 cm of rain a year.
Decay organic matter.
humus
Biome that is characterized by rolling hills, plains, and tall grasses.
prairie
What are prairies?
rolling hills and plains with sod forming grasses
Underground stem that ensures a plant's survival despite grass fires.
runner
What is a runner and how does it protect plants from their environmental?
runners are long horizontal stems above or below the ground. they protect the plants from never growing back, they protect the roots from wild fires.
Biome that is characterized by rainy seasons and long periods of drought.
savanna
Explain how bunchgrasses are adapted to the steppe.
short and clumped; can hold lot of water by holding it in the root area.
Organisms that form a mat of soil and roots that helps add organic matter to prairie soils.
sod-farming grasses
Grassland that receives less than 50 cm of annual rainfall.
steppe
What distinguishes a steppe from a desert?
the amount of rainfall
What adaptation of some plants and trees enables them to survive long periods without rain?
they adapt by becoming drought-resistant
What advantage do savanna trees and shrubs that grow thorns have?
they are less likely to get eaten
Describe the climate of the savanna.
they have rainy season and then long seasons of drought.
Explain the important role of grass fires in grasslands.
they keep the number of trees and shrubs there low.
What is the definition of a savanna?
tropical or subtropical grasslands ranging from dry scrub-land to wet, open woodlands
Large clumps of tall, coarse grasses found in savannas.
tuft
Behavior that enables different animal species to feed in the same area without competing.
vertical feeding patterns