The Serengeti volcanic grasslands stretch across northern Tanzania, taking in the eastern portion of Serengeti National Park and the plains lying south and east of the Ngorongoro Highlands. These are edaphic short-grasslands rooted in volcanic ash laid down by the Kerimasi and Ol Doinyo Lengai volcanoes, which hardened over time into calcareous tuff and hard-pan soils that favor a low, open sward over woodland. The vegetation is predominantly herbaceous, dominated by tough perennial grasses such as red oat grass (Themeda triandra), Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon), and Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana), alongside Andropogon, Digitaria, Eragrostis, Panicum, Pennisetum, and Sporobolus. Rainfall is strongly seasonal, and the open plains green under the rains and support one of the planet's great herbivore migrations of wildebeest and zebra. Roughly 86 percent of the ecoregion falls within protected areas, including Serengeti National Park, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and Lake Manyara National Park. For gardeners, several of its native grasses, notably Rhodes grass and Bermuda grass, are widely grown elsewhere as drought-tolerant turf and forage.

At a glance

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

No catalog plants intersect this ecoregion's zone range. As the catalog grows to cover this region's climate band, suggestions will surface here.

Collections for this ecoregion

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