Animal Life
Sample Population
There are many different types of animals in the savanna. Some of theses animals are:
- African Elephant
- African Wild Dog
- Black Mamba
- Caracal
- Chacma Baboon
- Egyptian Mongoose
- Emu
- Grant's Zebra
- Koala Bear
- Lion
- Nigriceps Ant
- Nile Crocodile
- Giraffes
Adaptions
Many animals who live in the savanna have long legs or wings so that they are able to migrate during the dry season. Animals with shorter appendages would not be able to make the journey, so when the plants shriveled up from the lack of water, these animals would be left without any food source. This would leave only the longer limbed animals to contribute their genes to the gene pool. The longer appendages on animals is a great example of natural selection. Some animals that live in the savanna burrow underground to avoid the heat and raise their young. Animals that cannot burrow to avoid the heat stay cool through large exposed areas of skin or panting because they can not sweat. Another behavioral adaption that is seen in the savanna is from buzzards and hawks. These large birds use the hot air updrafts to keep them soaring.
Natural Selection
Natural selection is based off of what species are the best fitted for their environment. For example, in the savanna animals must migrate during the dry season in order to have food. The animals without the ability to migrate would wind up dying from starvation from staying or along the journey. The animals that survived the migration would be able to pass on their genes to the new generation of that species, making them have the traits they need to migrate. For example, animals with longer limbs are able to migrate, so those are the genes that will get passed on to the new generation of animals.
Symbiosis
Mutualism is a type of relationship between animals where both species benefit, like the relationship between the ox pecker and the rhino. The ox pecker eats the ticks off of the rhino and warns the rhino of any danger lurking nearby. The ox pecker gets food from the ticks on the rhino while the rhino is benefited by knowing when there is danger.
Commensalism is when one species benefits and the other is highly unaffected, like the relationship between the grazing animals and birds. Many grazing animals are followed by birds. While this does not have any affect on the lives of the grazing animals, the birds are able to eat the bugs.
Parasitism is when one organism benefits, referred to as the parasite, at the expense of another, referred to as the host. One example of this relationship is ticks on an elephant. The ticks suck the elephants blood and can cause terrible disease to the elephant while getting the resources it needs to survive.
Predator and prey relationships are between two unlike species in where one is the predator and the other is the prey. On example of this type of relationship is between the lion and the gazelle. The gazelle acts as food for the lion making it the prey while the lion is the predator.
Commensalism is when one species benefits and the other is highly unaffected, like the relationship between the grazing animals and birds. Many grazing animals are followed by birds. While this does not have any affect on the lives of the grazing animals, the birds are able to eat the bugs.
Parasitism is when one organism benefits, referred to as the parasite, at the expense of another, referred to as the host. One example of this relationship is ticks on an elephant. The ticks suck the elephants blood and can cause terrible disease to the elephant while getting the resources it needs to survive.
Predator and prey relationships are between two unlike species in where one is the predator and the other is the prey. On example of this type of relationship is between the lion and the gazelle. The gazelle acts as food for the lion making it the prey while the lion is the predator.
Keystone Species
The African Elephant is the keystone species of the savanna. Without them the grasslands would cease to exist as grasslands. They would overgrow with woody plants and either covert to forests or shrub-lands. The sprouts of acacias, left unchecked, would form a closed stand of trees or shrubs. This would block the sunlight from the grasses causing them to disappear. Once the grasslands disappear so do the antelopes and gazelles that feed on them. Once the gazelles disappear so do the lions and the other carnivores that feast upon them. The elephants keep these sprouts in check because they yank young trees out by their roots stunting their growth by eating the growth points on their branches. They pry away at the bark of trees or push them over. Without the elephant the grasslands would not exists.