Why are savannas important stores of carbon?

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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.

Savannas are recognized as important carbon sinks because they store significant amounts of carbon across three primary components of their ecosystem:1

Trees: Woody vegetation captures and stores carbon within its structure.1
Soil: The ground itself acts as a major reservoir for carbon storage.1
Root Systems: Savannas are characterized by extensive root systems, particularly those of grasses, which store large quantities of carbon belowground.1

In many savanna regions, belowground biomass—which includes these deep root systems and other subterranean organs—is often as large as or even larger than the aboveground biomass. This significant underground storage capacity is a key factor in the savanna's role in the global carbon cycle.231