Tall Grass Prairie EcosystemBy Miss Sazenski

Location • I am a Tall Grass Prairie. I am found all over the world—on every continent except Antarctica. Here is a map of where I was found before settlers came to the United States. Now, I am in danger of disappearing.

• There are also Short Grass Prairies and Mixed Grass Prairies.

Living Parts of a Prairie—Plants

• I have many different species of plants. A few of them are:– Sweet Coneflower: gets to

be 6 feet tall if it grows in moist soil.

– Big Bluestem: the tallest grass found on prairies—it can get to be 11 feet tall! This grass was an important food for bison.

– Prairie Blazingstar: gets to be about 5 feet high. Many kinds of butterflies are attracted to this kind of flower.

Living Parts of a Prairie—Insects

• There are also many insects that use my plants for their survival. – Bees: We use the

plants to make honey and we use the soil to make our hive. We also help pollination occur for flowers and plants.

– Crickets and Grasshoppers

Living Parts of a Prairie—Insects

– Monarch butterflies: We depend on the milkweed plant found in many prairies. Our larvae feeds on the leaves of the plant. The leaves are toxic to most insects, but when we are adults it protects us from birds because it makes us poisonous.

– Butterflies and Moths

Living Parts of a Prairie—Animals

• Animals use my plants for protection from predators and weather, for homes, and to find food for their survival.– Birds: We eat the

seeds that fall off of flowers, build nests in grasses and trees, and find food in the soil.

Living Parts of a Prairie—Animals– Bison: We used to

roam the grasslands of the United States. Now there are fewer of us, but we feed on grasses, twigs, and shrubs.

– Coyote: We eat rodents, snakes, grains, and fruit found in the prairie. We also scavenge dead animals that are decomposing.

Living Parts of a Prairie—Animals

– Rodents: We typically blend in with the prairie landscape and a lot of us can dig underground to escape predators.

– Reptiles and Amphibians : We feed on small mammals, reptiles, birds, and insects found in the prairie.

Non-Living Parts of a Prairie• Air• Water• The soil of a prairie is very fertile so it is great for growing

plants.• Fire is necessary on prairies because it discourages non-

native plants and trees from growing. The native plants and trees are not harmed by fires though! Without fires, prairies would slowly turn into forests.

Roles• Grazing animals allows the prairie to grow in a healthy way

by removing the thick vegetation. It actually increases the growth of prairie plants. However, overgrazing is a problem!

• Bees help to pollinate the plants and flowers of the prairie. Birds help to carry seeds to new places.

• Grasses and flowers provide food and shelter to many insects and animals.

• Smaller prairie animals, such as the prairie dogs, are food for the larger prairie animals and birds. When these smaller animal populations diminish, the other animals also disappear.

Ways the Prairie Ecosystem Can Change and How the Changes Effect the Prairie

• Humans converted many wild grasslands to farms because the soil is so rich in nutrients in the early 1900s.

• Other prairies that haven’t been planted with crops have been grazed over by cattle. The cattle don’t move on, like wild bison used to, so the prairie doesn’t have a chance to replenish itself.

How We Can Protect the Prairie

Other Facts about Prairies• Prairies once covered about 40% of the United

States.• About one percent of North American prairies still

exist.• Over 100 plant species can occur in a prairie of

less than 5 acres!• Some prairie plants have roots that go 12 feet

below the prairie surface!• Prairie fires can move as fast as 600 feet per

minute and burn as hot as 700 degrees Fahrenheit!