The Llanos is a vast tropical savanna plain spanning Colombia and Venezuela in northwestern South America, occupying a great depression bounded by the Andes to the west, the Venezuelan Coastal Range to the north, and the Guiana Shield to the south. Its open grasslands are dominated by tussock-forming grasses such as Trachypogon, dotted with scattered trees like manteco and chaparro, while seasonally flooded "llano bajo" areas carry Paspalum grasses and palms including Copernicia tectorum, and gallery forests of Inga and Spondias mombin line the waterways. The climate is a true tropical savanna type with high temperatures around 27 degrees Celsius year-round and a sharply defined wet season from roughly April to November followed by a pronounced dry season. Biologically the region is best known for its wildlife rather than plant endemism, supporting capybaras, giant anteaters, the endangered giant otter, large jaguars, and wetlands rich in waterbirds such as the scarlet ibis. For gardeners working warm, seasonally dry sites, native genera adapted here include the legumes Mimosa, Cassia, and Stylosanthes alongside the fan palm Copernicia.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 6.7°N, 68.1°W.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
12a-13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
12a-13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.5°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
About the tropical & subtropical grasslands, savannas & shrublands biome
Warm grasslands and savannas where grasses dominate and trees are scattered, maintained by seasonal rainfall, grazing, and fire. They support large herbivore communities and respond sharply to wet–dry cycles.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.
Climate-resilient picks · 4
These plants fit this ecoregion today AND remain in range under the mid-century SSP3-7.0 projection. Lead with these for a planting that holds up as the climate shifts.
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other tropical & subtropical grasslands, savannas & shrublands ecoregions to explore: