Savannah―Biomes, By GeoDivide

Biomes is a documentary series created by GeoDivide, which explores our planet with beautiful high-quality documentaries including the latest in timelapse and drone technology.


The Savannah is the vast open country of the tropics. It consists of a patchwork of trees and shrubs on a bed of grass. It is a place of deluge and drought. It dominates the continent at the center of our world. Of all the world’s habitats, it supports the earth’s most famous wildlife, the safari.

The tropics of our planet have two habitats that are instantly recognizable. The first of these is the tropical rainforest. The other, much drier one is that of the tropical savannah. Spreading out over vast plains across three continents, the Savannahs of the tropics make up for any lack of biodiversity compared to their richer rainforest cousin in the sheer quantity of large mammalian wildlife, feeding on the endless grass, and on the animals that eat that grass.

So where in the world do we find Savannah? Well if we apply the strict definition of a natural mix of trees, shrubs, and grass, then they can occur in temperate and subtropical latitudes as well as the tropics. But these areas are relatively small compared to the tropical savannah that dominates the tropics, in South America, Australia, and above all, Africa.

Watch the Hazelwood Power Station Chimneys Get Demolished

The defunct, coal-fired Hazelwood Power Station was built in the 1960s. The plant was known as Australia’s dirtiest power station, responsible for 14% of the state’s total emissions and was shut down in March 2017.

According the The Guardian, eight chimneys were demolished with about 50kg of asbestos in each chimney and about 12 tonnes of concrete. The site will be monitored following the demolition in line with Victorian environment laws.

“There is absolutely no risk that asbestos will be anywhere other than on the ground, and ultimately remediated on site and stored in an approved cell.”

—Ryan Auger, Engie head of corporate affairs in Australia and New Zealand

Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Shows Record Devastation

This clip from Al Jazeera covers new aerial surveys of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, reflecting the most widespread and severe bleaching the coral reef has experienced.

The damage follows record high temperatures in February. James Cook University scientists issued a dire warning about the threat posed by climate change to the world’s largest living organism. They say temperatures over the next month are critical to how the reef recovers.

Let’s hope this Covid-19 worldwide slow down helps the reef recover quickly.