Lecture Notes: Ecological Succession

Introduction

Reference to the movie "Lion King," highlighting its depiction of life returning.
Comparison of movie's fast-paced ecological changes to real-life ecological succession.

Succession: Following of one thing after another in a sequence.
Ecological Succession: Process over time involving the organisms in an ecological community.

Organism: An individual living being (e.g., a hippo).
Population: A group of the same species in an area (e.g., a population of hippos).
Community: Multiple populations living together, including animals and plants (e.g., hippos, lions, giraffes, trees, shrubs).

Occurs in environments without existing soil.
Example: New land formed by a volcanic lava flow.
Pioneer Species: First colonizers, e.g., lichen and moss.
- Break down rock, forming substrate for plants.
- Lead to the development of soil supporting small vascular plants, shrubs, and eventually trees.
- Takes hundreds of years to reach a climax community.
Sequence Importance: Larger plants introduce competition for space and resources, affecting smaller plants.

Occurs in areas where an ecological community existed but was disturbed (e.g., forest fire, flood).
Soil remains present, allowing faster recovery and growth.
Pioneer Species: Small plants that can utilize existing soil.
Follow similar sequence as primary succession but generally faster due to pre-existing soil.

Ecological succession highlights growing biodiversity within an ecological community.
Biodiversity is an essential and beautiful aspect of nature.