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Which plants are common in East African savannas?

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Flat savanna plain with scattered acacia trees under a partly cloudy sky in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. — Savanna A savanna marked with acacia trees in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Africa's Serengeti Plain is commonly used as an example of the savanna biome—a hot, seasonally dry ecological region characterized by an open tree canopy (i.e., scattered trees) above an understory of continuous grasses.

In the drier regions of East Africa, the savanna landscape is characterized by a variety of trees and grasses adapted to seasonal moisture fluctuations.

Common Trees

Acacias (Acacia) and bushwillows (Combretum) are the most common trees in these areas.1
Baobabs (Adansonia digitata), sturdy palms (Borassus), and succulent species of spurge (Euphorbia) are also conspicuous in certain regions.1
In wetter savanna areas, Brachystegia trees are prevalent.1

Common Grasses

The grass layer is often dominated by species of bluestem (Andropogon), thatching grass (Hyparrhenia), and kangaroo grass (Themeda).1
In wetter savannas, these trees grow above an understory of elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum), which can reach heights of up to 3 meters (10 feet).1

The distribution of these plants is often influenced by soil type, with sandy soils favoring grass-rich environments and deeper, coarser soils supporting more tree-rich vegetation.2