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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.

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Temperate grasslands have warm summers with some rain. Grasslands receive about 500 to 950 mm of rain per year compared to deserts,

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While temperatures are often extreme in some grasslands, the average temperatures are about -20°C to 30°C

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Mammals like prairie dogs, bison, elk, deer, and pronghorn graze on the grasses and other plants that grow on the prairie.

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The main temperate grasslands are the steppe in Eurasia, the prairies of North America, as well as the downs of Australia and New Zealand.

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Mountain laurel, azaleas and mosses.

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In winter, temperatures can plummet below

0 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas. In summer, temperatures can reach above 90 degrees Fahrenheit.

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This type of massive root structure creates a dense net that develops a sod layer anchoring plants to the soil, which reduces erosion, retains water, and was once used to make homes because of its density

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Annually wind speeds vary from 0 m/s to 6 m/s. Grassland altitude typically occur at elevations between 5,250 and 7,200 ft.

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Keystone species, in ecology, a species that has a disproportionately large effect on the communities in which it lives.

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Prairie dogs are considered a “keystone” species because their colonies create islands of habitat that benefit approximately 150 other species. https://defenders.org/

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Without Prairie dogs most of the secondary consumers would probably die after not having enough of them to eat.

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A new scientific paper from Teagasc, UCC and international collaborators has shown diversification of the plant species in swards can be more effective than the application of microbial inoculants in supporting productivity in intensively managed grasslands. https://phys.org/

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native grassland plants have adapted to extreme weather conditions to such an extent that savannas, a subset of grasslands found in Africa, Australia, South America, and India, require seasonal droughts and wildfires to maintain biodiversity.

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