Savannas: A Very Short Introduction by Peter A. Furley

Author:Peter A. Furley
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780198717225
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Published: 2016-04-27T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 4

Wildlife and microbes

Savannas teem with life, but not all of the wildlife is immediately obvious. The lives of some savanna organisms can be tracked from their activities while others are hidden from view because of their size or habitat. Some may be identified by sound rather than by sight, such as many of the night-time animals. Wildlife depends upon the food resources provided by plants. These are the primary producers because they are able with the help of solar energy to convert inorganic materials into living matter. The primary converters of the Sun’s energy in turn form the food resource for animals and micro-organisms and in this way they construct a food chain. Eventually all the living tissues become dead organic matter, and energy is released during the processes of decomposition.

Within the savanna landscape, myriad food chains make up a food web or energy flow of such complexity that research has only been able to mimic a portion of the total picture. Furthermore, the continents differ greatly in the numbers and visibility of the wildlife that lives in or utilizes the gamut of resources. This chapter looks at the pathways of energy through the savanna system and the nature of the wildlife that characterizes each of the major savanna landscapes. This brings in consideration of the food chains and food webs as well as aspects of animal ecology that determine the number and character of living organisms.

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