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Ecological succession is the process of change in the species that make up an ecological community over time. The process of succession occurs either after the initial colonization of a newly created habitat, or after a disturbance substantially alters a pre-existing habitat. [ 1 ]
The sequences of succession are thus entirely dependent on life-history characteristics such as the specific amount of energy a species allocates to growth. [ 3 ] The climax community is composed of the most "tolerant" species that can co-exist with other species in a more densely populated area.
One example of primary succession takes place after a volcano has erupted. The lava flows into the ocean and hardens into new land. The resulting barren land is first colonized by pioneer organisms, like algae, which pave the way for later, less hardy plants, such as hardwood trees, by facilitating pedogenesis, especially through the biotic acceleration of weathering and the addition of ...
Eugenius Warming's work with ecological plant geography led to the founding of ecology as a discipline. [6] Charles Darwin's work also contributed to the science of ecology, and Darwin is often attributed with progressing the discipline more than anyone else in its young history. Ecological thought expanded even more in the early 20th century. [7]
A seral community is an intermediate stage found in ecological succession in an ecosystem advancing towards its climax community. In many cases more than one seral stage evolves until climax conditions are attained. [1] A prisere is a collection of seres making up the development of an area from non-vegetated surfaces to a climax community.
"Auto-" meaning self or same, and "-genic" meaning producing or causing. Autogenic succession refers to ecological succession driven by biotic factors within an ecosystem and although the mechanisms of autogenic succession have long been debated, the role of living things in shaping the progression of succession was realized early on.
Cyclic succession is a pattern of vegetation change in which in a small number of species tend to replace each other over time in the absence of large-scale disturbance. Observations of cyclic replacement have provided evidence against traditional Clementsian views of an end-state climax community with stable species compositions .
In ecology, allogenic succession is succession driven by the abiotic components of an ecosystem. [1] In contrast, autogenic succession is driven by the biotic components of the ecosystem. [1] An allogenic succession can be initiated in a number of ways which can include: Volcanic eruptions; Meteor or comet strike; Flooding; Drought; Earthquakes