Beni Biological Station, Bolivia Photograph by Jon Hornbuckle   Central South America: Northern Bolivia Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands   48,700 square miles (126,100 square kilometers) -- about the size of North Carolina Critical/Endangered

· Of Floods and Fires
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Of Floods and Fires

Both seasonal flooding during the wet season and fire during the dry season influence this ecoregion’s savanna landscape that is interwoven with patches of humid forest. The Beni Savanna is in northern Bolivia, bordered and bisected by numerous rivers that flood each year due to the high rainfall and the snowmelt from the eastern Andes.

Special Features

More than half of the region is flooded for up to ten months of the year, leading to swamp forests and flooded fields of grasses and sedges. During the dry season, fires spread across the savanna, leading to hardy, fire-tolerant communities that include such species as acacia, various grasses, and some palms. Single trees dot the savanna in places, while in others there are isolated patches of woodland and gallery forests along the riverbanks. Upland areas are not as affected by the floods and fires. Here, humid tropical forests with canopies topping 130 feet (40 m) thrive, supporting a great diversity of flora and fauna.

	Unusual among owls, the small burrowing owl--standing under 10 inches (25 cm)--is active during the day, spends most of its time on the ground, and lives in colonies, taking refuge in underground dens abandoned by small mammals.

Wild Side

Morning finds a large, noisy troop of spider monkeys feasting on fruit and then swinging through the trees with ease, using their prehensile tails as a fifth limb. Burrowing owls hunt for insects on the ground and in the bushes. Monk parakeets work together to build a nest of twigs on the upper limbs of a large tree. A pair of stocky bush dogs keeps in touch through high-pitched squeaks as they traverse these flooded forests. A small rodent known as the agouti bounds off into the woods, just as it’s spotted by the bush dog pair. Crested screamers use their hooked bills to rip off pieces of plants. As dusk falls, a female tapir and her calf awake and wander, snouts to the ground, in search of tasty fallen fruits. A colony of greater spear-nosed bats emerges from a cave, signaling the start of the nocturnal hunt. Standing tall on stilt-like legs, a lone maned wolf scans the night horizon.

Cause for Concern

The Beni Savanna suffers from cattle-grazing, seasonal uncontrolled burning for pasture maintenance, irrigation projects, increased hunting, and deforestation.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.