Testing the assumptions of chronosequences in succession

Many introductory ecology textbooks illustrate succession, at least in part, by using certain classic studies (e.g. sand dunes, ponds/bogs, glacial till, and old fields) that substituted space for time (chronosequence) in determining the sequences of the succession. Despite past criticisms of this method, there is continued, often uncritical, use of chronosequences in current research on topics besides succession, including temporal changes in biodiversity, productivity, nutrient cycling, etc. To show the problem with chronosequence-based studies in general, we review evidence from studies that used non-chronosequence methods (such as long-term study of permanent plots, palynology, and stand reconstruction) to test the space-for-time substitution in four classic succession studies. In several cases, the tests have used the same locations and, in one case, the same plots as those in the original studies. We show that empirical evidence invalidates the chronosequence-based sequences inferred in these classic studies.     

Post-burn succession on Brittany heathlands

Abstract. Vegetation succession after severe burning of a Brittany heathland was recorded in permanent plots for ten years. Mosses are the first colonizers, soon forming a dense layer which locally prevents establishment of new species. Ten years later, the moss layer is still an important component of the regenerating heathland. After ten years the pattern of species distribution is mosaic-like with grassy patches (Agrostis), heath patches (Erica, Flex), and wood (Betula). Processes which may be involved in this successional pattern are discussed. They are found to be pluriform: various strategy types, types of response to disturbance and various succession models operate simultaneously.     

林窗干扰与森林群落演替

林窗干扰是影响森林群落演替的一个重要因素。该文从林窗干扰和森林群落演替理论及林窗对森林群落微环境、植物入侵和定居、群落结构、群落演替的影响等方面简要介绍了当前国内外有关林窗干扰与森林群落演替的研究现状和研究前景。     

弃耕演替与恢复生态学

弃耕演替是一种重要的演替模式 ,可以为生态恢复规划提供指导。弃耕演替为进展演替 ,但要恢复为稳定的生态系统可能会经历很长一段时间。这是由演替本身的规律决定的。适当的人为干预可能会改变这种状况 ,并使演替进程大大缩短。对弃耕演替的研究是恢复生态学兴起的原始策动力 ,恢复生态学是在对弃耕演替的研究中形成并获得发展的。弃耕演替研究隶属于恢复生态学 ,是恢复生态学涵盖的一个重要领域。     

Competition and succession among coral endosymbionts

Host species often support a genetically diverse guild of symbionts, the identity and performance of which can determine holobiont fitness under particular environmental conditions. These symbiont communities are structured by a complex set of potential interactions, both positive and negative, between the host and symbionts and among symbionts. In reef‐building corals, stable associations with specific symbiont species are common, and we hypothesize that this is partly due to ecological mechanisms, such as succession and competition, which drive patterns of symbiont winnowing in the initial colonization of new generations of coral recruits. We tested this hypothesis using the experimental framework of the de Wit replacement series and found that competitive interactions occurred among symbionts which were characterized by unique ecological strategies. Aposymbiotic octocoral recruits within high‐ and low‐light environments were inoculated with one of three Symbiodiniaceae species as monocultures or with cross‐paired mixtures, and we tracked symbiont uptake using quantitative genetic assays. Priority effects, in which early colonizers excluded competitive dominants, were evidenced under low light, but these early opportunistic species were later succeeded by competitive dominants. Under high light, a more consistent competitive hierarchy was established in which competitive dominants outgrew and limited the abundance of others. These findings provide insight into mechanisms of microbial community organization and symbiosis breakdown and recovery. Furthermore, transitions in competitive outcomes across spatial and temporal environmental variation may improve lifetime host fitness.     

The effect of a seed source on primary succession in a forest ecosystem

An analysis of the Relative Importance Value Index (RIVI) of later successional tree species and the Shannon diversity indexH of all tree and shrub species was undertaken on previously mined sites within a sparsely forested area in central Florida, USA. A comparative analysis of the distance to a seed source and the age of a site suggested that the distance to a seed source was the best predictor (R ²=0.85) of the regeneration of the later successional species and a good predictor of species diversity. Both theRIVI of the later successional species and the diversity index decreased with the distance from the seed source. The lack of a seed source containing climax species resulted in arrested succession at some sites. It is suggested that biological information is the causative means of succession and the dispersal of this information entails spatial dependency while its introduction and development are time dependent processes.Research was part of a project of the Center for Wetlands, University of Florida, Gainesville under contract with the Florida Institute of Phosphate Research. Interactions of Wetlands with Phosphate Mining, H. T. Odum and G. R. Best, principal investigators. B. T. Rushton, J. Butner, G. R. Best, R. S. Schnoes and S. R. Humphrey are thanked for the use of their data.     

气候变化对森林演替的影响

森林演替是森林生态动力源驱动下森林再生的生态学过程,自20世纪初建立群落演替理论以来,演替研究成为生态学研究中的热点．客观准确地认识森林演替规律,研究森林演替动力学机理及其模型,是科学管理森林生态系统的需要;对于天然林保护工程与森林植被的恢复重建,具有重要的理论与实际意义．干扰是森林循环的驱动力,导致森林生态系统时空异质性,是更新格局和生态学过程的主要影响因素．它可改变资源的有效性,干扰导致的林隙是森林循环的起点．回顾了目前演替研究的几种方法,即马尔科夫模型、林窗模型(GAP)、陆地生物圈模型(BIOME)和非线性演替模式．介绍了气候变化对森林演替的影响;并在已有成果的基础上,提出了目前研究存在的问题及未来的发展方向．     

Diatom flora of a kettle-hole bog in relation to hydrarch succession zones

Diatom assemblages were compared to the vegetational seres and to physical and chemical parameters of a kettle-hole bog which had distinct hydrarch successional zones and was in turn surrounded by a cattail marsh and a willow swamp. Multivariate analysis of variance showed the water parameters (temperature, pH, conductivity, color, free calcium) among the zones were significantly different (p < 0.0001). Diatoms were enumerated using the first 500 valves counting method and results showed each zone had a distinct flora. Cluster analysis of the diatom data by both species and zones grouped the bog successional zones into one major group and the marsh/swamp zones into the second major group. The occurrence of well defined seral stages of vegetation and diatoms suggests microorganisms are undergoing ecological succession in kettle-hole bogs.     

Colonization and early succession on anthropogenic soils

Abstract. This paper reports on vegetation development on permanent experimental plots during five years of succession. Nine (1 m²) plots were filled with three typical substrates from man-made habitats of urban and industrial areas in the region of Berlin. The three substrates (a commercial ‘topsoil’, a ruderal ‘landfill’ soil and a sandy soil), differ in organic matter and nutrient contents. Relevés of species composition and percent cover of each species present were made monthly during the growing season from the start of vegetation development. This paper describes the different successional pathways on topsoil and ruderal soil and the colonization process on sandy soil. On topsoil, ruderal annuals are dominant in the first year and are replaced by short-lived perennials from the second year. Those species were replaced by long-lived perennial herbs (Ballota nigra or Urtica dioica) from the third year of succession onwards. On the ruderal land-fill soil the early successional stages are less sharp and the perennial Solidago canadensis is able to dominate within one year after the succession was initiated. On sandy soil there is still an ongoing colonization process, where pioneer tree species like Betula pendula and Populus nigra play a main role. The importance of ‘initial floristic composition’, the role of substrate for community structure and the peculiarities of successional sequences on anthropogenic soils in the context of primary and secondary successions are discussed.     

江苏省海滩植被演替的研究

江苏省海滩植被可分为滨海盐土植被、盐沼植被及海滩沙生植被三个基本类型。本文论述了这些植被类型的演替规律。滨海盐土植被与盐沼植被的演替,外因于土壤盐分含量递减与有机质含量的递增;海滩沙生植被的演替,外因于土壤沙颗粒大小及其相应的土壤含水量的变化,所以海滩植被演替为外因动态演替。     

Soil nitrogen mineralization in a coastal fynbos succession

Patterns of net nitrogen mineralization and nitrification in 0–7.5 cm deep mineral soils of different stages (seral ages 1, 6 and 20 years) of a post-fire coastal fynbos succession were assayed using laboratory andin situ incubations. No evidence of increasing allelopathic inhibition of nitrification with successional development was found as NO₃−N was the predominant product at all seral stages and the NO₃−N∶NH₄−N ratio remained constant. Rather the results of field incubations of soils beneathProtea repens stands of different successional ages showed that increased mineralization and nitrification appeared to be associated with increased soil total N content rather than with successional age. Further, the incubation of soilsin situ during the dry summer months showed that NO₃−N production appears to be closely related to temperature and soil moisture content, both of which are variables that vary throughout succession due to the changing structure of the vegetation.     

Dynamics of vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae during old field succession

Summary The species composition of vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungal communities changed during secondary succession of abandoned fields based on a field to forest chronosequence. Twenty-five VAM fungal species were identified. Seven species were clearly early successional and five species were clearly late successional. The total number of VAM fungal species did not increase with successional time, but diversity as measured by the Shannon-Wiener index tended to increase, primarily because the community became more even as a single species, Glomus aggregatum, became less dominant in the older sites. Diversity of the VAM fungal community was positively correlated with soil C and N. The density of VAM fungi, as measured by infectivity and total spore count, first increased with time since abandonment and then decreased in the late successional forest sites. Within 12 abandoned fields, VAM fungal density increased with increasing soil pH, H₂O soluble soil C, and root biomass, but was inversely related to extractable soil P and percent cover of non-host plant species. The lower abundance of VAM fungi in the forest sites compared with the field sites agrees with the findings of other workers and corresponds with a shift in the dominant vegetation from herbaceous VAM hosts to woody ectomycorrhizal hosts.     

The role of spontaneous vegetation succession in ecosystem restoration: A perspective

Abstract. The paper summarizes ideas which were discussed during the ‘Spontaneous Succession in Ecosystem Restoration’ conference and elaborated through further discussion among the authors. It seeks to promote the integration of scientific knowledge on spontaneous vegetation succession into restoration programs. A scheme illustrating how knowledge of spontaneous succession may be applied to restoration is presented, and perspectives and possible future research on using spontaneous vegetation succession in ecosystem restoration are proposed. It is concluded that when implementing spontaneous succession for ecological restoration the following points must be considered: setting clear aims; evaluation of environmental site conditions; deciding whether spontaneous succession is an appropriate way to achieve the aims; prediction of successional development; monitoring of the results. The need for interdisciplinary approaches and communication between scientists, engineers and decision‐makers is emphasized.     

三沙湾浮游动物生态类群演替特征

根据2010年6月-2011年5月三沙湾海域5个航次海洋综合调查资料,对三沙湾浮游动物种群特征进行分析,并与我国不同纬度海湾生态类群结构进行比较.探讨三沙湾海域浮游动物生态类群季节变化特征及其受水团季节变化的影响.研究结果表明:4月和5月三沙湾海域主要受到浙闽沿岸流影响,生物多样性H'指数分别为2.03和2.02;种类数分别仅为17种和19种,明显低于6月、8月和10月;浮游动物生态类群以暖温带近海种为主;优势种种类数少,单一优势种优势性明显,4月中华哲水蚤丰度占浮游动物总丰度的65.03％;群落结构特征与同期我国长江口浮游动物区系特征相似.6月三沙湾海域受到浙闽沿岸流和台湾暖流共同影响,同时因闽北雨季导致大量大陆径流汇入,使得该月浮游动物种群结构复杂,生物多样性指数和种类数全年最高,为3.12和45种,与5月相比,种类更替明显,物种更替率为69.39％;亚热带近海种丰度百分比最高(73.03％),亚热带外海种种类数百分比次之(48.89％),是海域浮游动物生态类群由以暖温带近海种为主向以亚热带外海种为主的过渡时期.8月和10月浙闽沿岸流消失,三沙湾海域受台湾暖流控制,海水温度和盐度升高,生物多样性指数和种类数均略低于6月;生态类群结构以亚热带外海种为主;优势种特征表现为种类数多而各个优势种丰度较低;浮游动物群落结构特征与南海北部海域浮游动物组成极为相似.     

Changes in atrazine toxicity throughout succession of stream periphyton communities

A study was made to describe atrazine toxicity and its changes throughout succession of periphyton communities of an undisturbed Mediterranean stream. Toxicity was assessed by short-term physiological tests (concentration-effect curves of photosynthesis to atrazine) in the laboratory using artificial substrates colonized in one stream site during winter, and two stream sites (one open and the other shaded) during summer. In the winter experiment, when environmental conditions were relatively steady and chlorophyll content was low, toxicity increased according to the increases in cell density and chlorophyll content throughout colonization. EC₅₀ (concentration inhibiting photosynthesis by 50%) was above 0.8 μM atrazine until day 16 and below 0.4 μM atrazine after three weeks. In the summer experiment, under more variable environmental conditions, the differences between the EC₅₀ at the beginning and the end of the colonization experiments were not significant (one factor ANOVA) at the two sites. EC₅₀ was on average 0.89 μM atrazine in the shaded site and 0.29 μM atrazine in the open site. A significant negative correlation between irradiance and EC₅₀ was observed all the experiments were considered together (r = 0.464, n = 20, p<0.05), suggesting that light history may have an important role in the response to atrazine. This investigation reveals that the response of stream periphyton to atrazine is likely to be influenced by colonization time and the corresponding changes in algal density and community composition as well as by environmental conditions (e.g. light regime) throughout succession. This revised version was published online in September 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Seaweed succession on artificial reefs on different bottom substrata

Artificial rest reefs were set on sandy and rocky bottoms at 5–10 m depth along the coast of southern Japan. Mature thalli ofSargassum, Gelidium and other seaweds were transported from other coastal areas, packed in mesh bags and attached to the reefs to start the beds. After one year, the seaweed flora on the reef on a sandy bottom consisted of more than 20 species, includingSargassum spp. andGelidium amansii, which are important animal food species. Coralline algae were the dominants on the rocky bottom reefs. The lower biomass on reefs on the rocky bottom was due to grazing by urchins. The same number of species was present in the first and second years on reefs on sandy bottoms, but there were moreSargassum thalli the second year.Maximum algal biomass of the artificial reef in May of the second year was 9998 g wet wt m^–2 in sandy areas, 441 g wet wt m^–2 in boulder areas and 228 g wet wt m^–2 in rocky areas. Reefs on rocky bottoms continued to be covered by coralline algae and several species ofCodium andDictyota.     

Dynamics of nitrogen and phosphorus retention during wetland ecosystem succession

We compared the mechanisms of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) removal in four young (<15 years old) constructed estuarine marshes with paired mature natural marshes to determine how nutrient retention changes during wetland ecosystem succession. In constructed wetlands, N retention begins as soon as emergent vegetation becomes established and soil organic matter starts to accumulate, which is usually within the first 1–3 years. Accumulation of organic carbon in the soil sets the stage for denitrification which, after 5–10 years, removes approximately the same amount of N as accumulating organic matter, 5–10 g/m²/yr each, under conditions of low N loadings. Under high N loadings, the amount of N stored in accumulating organic matter doubles while N removal from denitrification may increase by an order of magnitude or more. Both organic N accumulation and denitrification provide for long-term reliable N removal regardless of N loading rates. Phosphorus removal, on the other hand, is greatest during the first 1–3 years of succession when sediment deposition and sorption/precipitation of P are greatest. During this time, constructed marshes may retain from 3 g P/m²/yr under low P loadings to as much as 30 g P/m²/yr under high loadings. However, as sedimentation decreases and sorption sites become saturated, P retention decreases to levels supported by organic P accumulation (1–2 g P/m²/yr) and sorption/precipitation with incoming aqueous and particulate Fe, Al and Ca. Phosphorus cycling in wetlands differs from forest and other terrestrial ecosystems in that conservation of P is greatest during the early years of succession, not during the middle or late stages. Conservation of P by wetlands is largely regulated by geochemical processes (sorption, precipitation) which operate independently of succession. In contrast, the conservation of N is controlled by biological processes (organic matter accumulation, denitrification) that change as succession proceeds.     

Evidence of species succession during chlorobenzene biodegradation

We have previously reported the disappearance of a specific strain degrading chlorobenzene from a functionally stable bioreactor. In the present work, we investigated this species succession and isolated a new dominant strain, identified as Pandoraea pnomenusa sp. strain MCB032. A specific 16S rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probe was designed and validated to identify strain MCB032 using fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH). The results confirmed the presence of strain MCB032 in samples collected over time, and showed that it was primarily located within the biofilm. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) provided evidence that the species succession occurred early in the operating period. The application of these biomolecular tools highlighted the remarkable stability of this new strain during the 15 months of reactor operation. The succession was attributed to the competitive kinetic behaviour of strain MCB032, which exhibited faster growth (micro(max) = 0.34 h(-1)) and higher substrate affinity (K(s) = 0.35 mg L(-1)) than strain JS150. Finally, this study contributed to the characterisation of the recently established Pandoraea genus, an emerging group in the biodegradation field.