Geography and Locations: In general, savannas grow in tropical regions 8° to 20° from the Equator. The African Savanna biome is a tropical grassland in Africa between latitude 15° North and 30 degrees S and longitude 15 degrees W and 40° West.
**It covers Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote D'ivore, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, and South Africa.
*** The African Savanna covers roughly half of the whole continent of Africa.
Soil: The soil of the savanna is porous and a bit sandy, with rapid drainage of water. It has only a thin layer of nutritious topsoil. The dominant vegetation consists of grasses and forbs (small broad-leaved plants that grow with grasses). Different savannas support different grasses due to differences in rainfall and soil conditions.
**One type of savanna common in southwestern Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, known as grouped-tree grassland, has trees growing only on termite mounds — the intervening soil being too thin or poorly drained to support the growth of trees at all.
Sunlight: The average daily amount of sunlight for these savanna areas is approximately 10.95 hours. This promotes plant growth, but can also deplete plant moisture. This fact is a factor in the types of grasses and trees densities found in this region.
Terrain and Altitude: A rolling grassland dotted with trees and low growing shrubs is one way to describe the African Savanna. It is crisscrossed with rivers and vast oceans of short grass, long grass and only the occasional rocky outcrop.
** Frequent annual fires, during the dry season,and large grazing mammals kill seedlings, thus keeping the density of trees and shrubs low.
**There are some perfectly flat valleys lying in many areas of central Africa, while other parts of the savanna in northern Africa are decorated with cliffs, gorges and a few mountains. Mt. Kilimanjaro and Mt. Kenya are two examples of this. Thus the altitude varies from 0 to over 2000 meters above sea level in general and much higher near the mountains.
***The central savanna areas of Africa are home to some of the worlds largest (lake Victoria) and deepest (lake Tanganyika) lakes and other natural wonders.
- Temperature, Wind and Rainfall:
- Unlike some parts of the world where strong winds are a key feature of the area, the savanna, is characterized by gentle breezes with very rare occasions of strong winds or sudden, severe temperature fluctuations.
- The savanna climate has an average temperature range of 68° to 86° F (20° - 30° C). In the winter, it is usually about 68° to 78° F (20° - 25° C). In the summer the temperature ranges from 78° to 86° F (25° - 30° C). In a Savanna the temperature does not change a lot. When it does change , it is a gradual change.
- Like all savannas, the African savanna has a wet season of several months followed by an almost rainless and longer dry season. Average annual precipitation is generally 80 to 150 mm (31 to 59 inches), although in some central continental locations it may be as low as 50 mm (20 inches).
- During the rainy or summer season in Northern Africa, beginning in April and ending in November, rainfall averages six to nine inches per month. In the dry or winter season they may average only 1 inch of rain per month. The dry season is usually longer than the wet season, typically running from October to March in northern Africa and the rest of the northern hemisphere and April to September in the southern hemisphere near countries such as Zambia.
Best time of year to book a travel package?
Arguably, the best time to plan a trip to the Southern African safari is in the months of June, July or August. Although many natural wonders can be enjoyed year round, the Great Wildebeest Migration, Hot Air Ballooning and drier, less muddy weather makes the dry season the preferred travel season for most guests.
What to bring? :Other than a rugged camera, be sure to bring short pants and shirts and a hat for the heat of the day and long pants and and long sleeved shirts for the nights , which can get a bit cool. Comfortable hiking boots and sunscreen are also recommended.
Arguably, the best time to plan a trip to the Southern African safari is in the months of June, July or August. Although many natural wonders can be enjoyed year round, the Great Wildebeest Migration, Hot Air Ballooning and drier, less muddy weather makes the dry season the preferred travel season for most guests.
What to bring? :Other than a rugged camera, be sure to bring short pants and shirts and a hat for the heat of the day and long pants and and long sleeved shirts for the nights , which can get a bit cool. Comfortable hiking boots and sunscreen are also recommended.