The African Savannah – Virtual Field Trip

#ngscience #habitat #virtualfieldtrip #earthscience

Join us on a virtual adventure to the African Savanna!

Aligns to the NGSS standard for Grade 3 looking at the adaptations of organisms to survive in different habitats.

A savanna is a tropical grassland habitat. Like a tropical rainforest, it is warm year round. Savannas are mostly dry, with seasonal rains, usually during summer.

Savannas are mostly wide open places with grasses, shrubs ad scattered trees.

Many plants in savannas have long deep roots, called taproots, that reach deep underground. Some plants, such as the baobab, store water in their stems.

Living in a wide open savanna means hiding from animals and escaping danger is important.

Animals like meerkats hide in burrows to avoid predators. Others, such as gazelles run, jump and change direction quickly to avoid getting caught by animals like cheetahs.

Escaping a cheetah is a tough job!
A cheetahs dark spots make it camouflaged in the dry vegetation allowing it to sneak up on its prey. Cheetahs are also the fastest land animals on earth. They can reach speeds of more than 60 kilometers per hour when chasing prey.

Did you know?
The Serengeti is a vast grassland habitat in Africa. It is home to many big predators including lions, cheetahs and leopards.

Lions in the Serengeti are often seen climbing trees. Scientists believe this may be an adaptation to avoid getting bitten by insects on the ground.