Cajari Reserve, Amapa, Brazil Photograph by © WWF-Canon/Juan PRATGINESTOS   South America: Northern Brazil, Guyana, and Venezuela Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands   40,300 square miles (104,400 square kilometers) -- about the size of Kentucky Vulnerable

· Prints in the Dirt
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Prints in the Dirt

The large, relatively intact grasslands of the Guyanan Savanna ecoregion lie between the Amazon and Orinoco River Basins in northern South America. They are embedded in a landscape of tropical rainforest and tepui sandstone peaks. These grasslands occur in three distinct patches, becoming increasingly smaller as they move south from the Guyana Shield to the mouth of the Amazon River. The diverse landscape contains clues to its inhabitants, if you look closely. Jaguars, for example, are rarely seen but leave traces that can be identified, such as paw prints. You might also see the feathers of hawks and eagles or the tracks of an armadillo.

Special Features

This ecoregion forms part of the "transverse dry belt" that separates the moist forests of the Orinoco Basin from those of the Amazon Basin. The largest savanna patch is near the intersection of Brazil, Venezuela, and Guyana, with the other two found farther east in Brazil, near the borders of Suriname and French Guiana. These savannas were created by a combination of an impermeable subsoil layer and sandy and gravelly soils located on a deep water table. Grass is the dominant vegetation type, with shrubs, trees, and small forest islands found here as well. Annual rainfall is between 40 to 80 inches (1,000 to 2,000 mm). Cypress, melostome, and nance are among the most common types of trees in this ecoregion. Nance trees have delicious yellow fruits that are a delicacy to both wildlife and local people.

	Tapirs may look like a cross between a small elephant and a pig, but these hoofed mammals are most closely related to horses and rhinos. Tapirs do not float, and are able to walk on the bottom of rivers and ponds like a hippopotamus.

Wild Side

Reptiles, mammals, and birds have been poorly surveyed in this region because of its remoteness. However, large, intact grasslands and surrounding habitats are able to support diverse populations including pumas, jaguars, giant anteaters, giant armadillos, and tapirs. Birds found in this ecoregion include the harpy eagle, the largest raptor in South America; the jabiru, a large water bird; the great tinamou, a large land bird; and the savanna hawk. Other birds sometimes seen here include the black-faced hawk, red-shouldered macaw, and painted parakeet.

Cause for Concern

The East-West Highway in northern Brazil is opening this ecoregion to deforestation, fragmentation, and poaching. Mining and cattle ranching are also threats.

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