Biology / Unit 14 Bio 3497 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Grassland and the Role of Fire Disturbance
Captions available
The idea
Grassland biomes have moderate, seasonal precipitation, and periodic fire disturbance limits woody-plant encroachment, maintaining the biome's characteristic open, grass-dominated structure.
In practice
Periodic fire kills encroaching tree seedlings before they shade out the grasses, which resprout quickly from fire-protected underground roots.
Where people slip
Fire in a fire-adapted biome is a maintaining disturbance, not a destructive anomaly the ecosystem merely survives.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it · Sources for Biology