Succession

Succession

Following in order or sequence

Ecological Succession

The process by which the mix of species and habitat in an area change over time.

Primary succession

When living things grow in a new place for the first time

Pioneer species

The first to colonize an area

Climax Forest

Tree species that will stay in the area until something wipes them out.

Examples: Oaks and hickories

Secondary Succession

When organisms start to grow again after a catastrophic event or natural disaster

Climax Community

When an area reaches its FINAL species composition; no other major species will grow or live there besides the present species unless they’re wiped out and secondary succession occurs again.

Aquatic Succession

Overtime, a body of water will fill in with sediment, becoming solid land again. This takes hundreds, thousands, or even millions of years.

Immigration

Species come IN to an environment

Emmigration

Species going OUT of an environment