Grasslands are located on every continent except Antarctica and are typically found in regions that are too dry to support forests but too wet to form deserts
. They often occur between temperate forests at higher latitudes and deserts at subtropical latitudes
. Major locations of grasslands include:
- North America: Central United States and parts of Canada and Mexico, known as prairies
- South America: Southeast regions such as Uruguay and Argentina, with grasslands called pampas
- Africa: Tropical grasslands or savannas mainly in the Sahel region south of the Sahara and in East Africa
- Eurasia: The Eurasian Steppe stretches from Hungary through Ukraine to China and Mongolia, covering a vast area
- Australia: Extensive rangelands across much of the continent
- Asia: Tropical grasslands also occur in parts of India and other regions within the tropical belt
Grasslands cover about 31–69% of the Earth's land area, making them one of the largest biomes globally
. They exist in both tropical zones (between approximately 30ºN and 30ºS) and temperate zones, with tropical grasslands often overlapping with savannas
. In summary, grasslands are widespread across the globe, mainly situated in continental interiors between forests and deserts, with distinct regional names such as prairies, pampas, steppes, savannas, and rangelands depending on their location
