Prairies once occupied much of the central United States. Grasses and other herbaceous plants dominate prairies; savannas occur where prairies and forests come together in broken mixtures.
Photo: Mike Habeck.
Eastern tallgrass prairies receive more rainfall than do shortgrass prairies that occur farther west. Bison, antelope, wolves, prairie dogs, and many other animals were once common here. However, the astounding productivity of prairie soils long since led to conversion of much prairie land to agriculture.