Grassland and savanna

 Climate
o Temperature
o Precipitacion
Tropical grasslands are found in tropical wet and dry climates. These
areas are hot year-round, usually never dropping under 64 degrees
Farenheit. Although these areas are overall very dry, they do have a
season of heavy rain. Annual rainfall is from 20-50 inches per year. It
is crucial that the rainfall is concentrated in six or eight months of the
year, followed by a long period of drought when fires can occur. If
the rain were well distributed throughout the year, many such areas
would become tropical forest.

The Savanna biome has a wet/dry climate. Its Köppen climate group is Aw. The
Astands for a tropical climate, and the wfor a dry season in the winter.
In the savanna climate there is a distinct dry season, which is in the winter.
Savannas get all their rain in the summer months. During the distinct dry
season of a savanna, most of the plants shrivel up and die. Some rivers and
streams dry up. Most of the animals migrate to find food.
In the wet season all of the plants are lush and the rivers flow freely. The
animals migrate back to graze. In West Africa the rainy season begins in May.
It is usually cooler during the dry season by a few degrees. Because it is in the
tropical latitudes that is still hot enough. The savanna climate has a
temperature range of 68° to 86° F (20° - 30° C). In the winter, it is usually about
68° to 78° F (20° - 25° C). In the summer the temperature ranges from 78° to
86° F (25° - 30° C). In a Savanna the temperature does not change a lot. When
it does, its very gradual and not drastic.
There is an annual precipitation of 10 to 30 inches (100 to 150 cm) of rain.
From December to February hardly any rain falls at all.

If the rain were well distributed throughout the year, many such areas
would become tropical forest. Savannas which result from climatic
conditions are called climatic savannas. Savannas that are caused by
soil conditions and that are not entirely maintained by fire are called
edaphic savannas. These can occur on hills or ridges where the soil is
shallow, or in valleys where clay soils become waterlogged in wet
weather. A third type of savanna, known as derived savanna, is the
result of people clearing forest land for cultivation. Farmers fell a tract
of forest, burn the dead trees, and plant crops in the ashes for as long
as the soil remains fertile. Then, the field is abandoned and, although
forest trees may recolonize, grass takes over on the bare ground
(succession), becoming luxuriant enough to burn within a year or so.
In Africa, a heavy concentration of elephants in protected parkland
have created a savanna by eating leaves and twigs and breaking off
the branches, smashing the trunks and stripping the bark of trees.
Elephants can convert a dense woodland into an open grassland in a
short period of time. Annual fires then maintain the area as a savanna.
http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/savanna_climate_page.htm
http://www.defenders.org/grasslands/tropical-grasslands
http://www.defenders.org/grasslands/temperate-grasslands
http://www.thesustainabilitycouncil.org/savanna-biome.html
Both the savanna biome and the grassland biome are characterized by a
wet and dry climate. They have a wet season (which occurs mostly during
summer), and a dry season (which occurs mostly during winter).

During the dry season, most of the plants die, due to a lack of water,
animals in their majority migrate to find food, and river streams dry up. The
temperature usually ranges between 20ºC and 25ºC. Usually, in both of these
biomes the temperature does not change often, and when it does it is a
gradual change.

Also, during the dry season it is common for fires to occur. These help
maintain the grassland and savanna.

During the wet season, the temperature ranges between 25ºC and 30ªC.
In these biomes, the rainfall (20 to 50 inches per year) is concentrated in a
period of six to eight months. Therefore all of the precipitations occur during
the wet season (mostly between May and November, with no precipitations
between December and February). This is an important factor, because if the
precipitations were distributed equally throughout the year, most of these
areas would stop being grasslands or savannas and become tropical
rainforests.

Moreover, during the wet season the plants are full of life, rivers flow
normally, and the animals that left during the dry season migrate back to graze
(feed on grass). It is both hot and humid, with the humid air from the ground
rising and colliding with the cold air above, turning into rain.