Chapter 16 Outline
Case Study: A Natural Experiment of Mountainous Proportions
Agents of Change
CONCEPT 16.1 Agents of change act on communities across multiple temporal and spatial scales.
- Agents of change can be abiotic or biotic
- Agents of change vary in their intensity, frequency, and extent
Basics of Succession
CONCEPT 16.2 Succession is the change in species composition over time as a result of abiotic and biotic agents of change.
- The early history of ecology is a study of succession
- Multiple models of succession were stimulated by lack of scientific consensus
Mechanisms of Succession
CONCEPT 16.3 Experimental work on succession shows its mechanisms to be diverse and context-dependent.
- Studies of succession show that no one model fits any one community
- Experiments show facilitation to be important in early stages
Alternative Stable States
CONCEPT 16.4 Communities can follow different successional paths and display alternative states.
- Alternative states are controlled by strongly interacting species
- Human actions have caused communities to shift to alternative states
Case Study Revisited: A Natural Experiment of Mountainous Proportions
Connections in Nature: Primary Succession and Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria
