Why are the tropical savannas important?
People consider tropical savannas to be important for a number of reasons. We list two of the most prominent reasons below, taking Australia’s tropical savannas as an example. High in Biodiversity Tropical savannas are a major reservoir of biodiversity – some areas of tropical savanna may have a similar biodiversity level to tropical rainforest. They are home to hundreds of species of native plants, mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians and tens of thousands of different species of invertebrates. Many species in all these groups are found nowhere else in the world. There are a few reasons for this. The tropics are generally found to have a higher biodiversity for any given area than regions in higher latitudes. This may relate to several factors, such as: (i) less frost; (ii) higher energy levels from the more intense sunshine reaching tropical ecosystems; (iii) the large areas of rainforest that are found in the tropics; (iv) tropical temperatures and humidity don’t vary as much ove
