Notes #2Ecological Succession
NAME_________________________________
Period_____ Date_______________________
Answer the following:
Community
Ecological succession
____________________________________the
series of predictable changes that occur in a
_______________________________-all of the different organisms that live together in an area.
community over time.
** ______________________________
Primary
succession refers to the settlement/establishment of
vegetation in an area previously uncolonized by organisms (often starts with bare rock!).
Organisms which
pioneer
first colonize an area are known as_______________________ species (lichens and mosses.)
** _______________________
Secondary
succession refers to the recolonization of a geographic area,
which had been previously settled, but somehow disrupted. Some causes of disruption include
Fire
a. ____________
b. Volcanism
c. Severe weather
d. Agriculture
e. ____________________
Development
Both processes (primary and secondary succession) result in the most stable type of biome given
climax
its geographical location. This is called a _________________________community.
Be able to tell
which picture is
which type of
succession.
Go to this website:
http://www.biologycorner.com/worksheets/succession.html
Answer the following questions after READING the information:
1. Write the letters of the ponds in order from the youngest, to the oldest.
B
Youngest_________
C
______
A
______
D
______ Oldest
B
2. Black bass and bluegill make their nests on sandy bottoms. In which pond would you find them? _____
3. What will happen to the black bass and blue gill as the floor of the ponds fills with organic debris?
Fish will eventually die out because they have no
place to lay their eggs.
4. Golden shiner and mud minnows lay their eggs on Chara. In which pond would you find them?________
C
___________________________________________________________________
5. Some amphibians and crayfish can withstand periods of dryness by burying themselves in mud. In
which pond(s) would they survive? ________
A and D
6. Dragonfly nymphs spend their early stages clinging to submerged plants. Then, they climb to the
surface, shed their skins and fly away as dragonflies. Which pond is best suited for
dragonflies?__________
A
7. In which pond will gill breathing snails be replaced by lung breathing snails that climb to the
surface to breathe? __________
A and D
8. Some mussels require a sandy bottom in order to maintain an upright position. In which pond will
they die out. _____________
D
9. The climax community in the area of Michigan is a beech-maple forest. After the ponds are filled
in, the area will undergo another series of stages of succession. This is illustrated below.
Briefly explain what is happening in the
diagram. What do you especially notice
about the trees?
Small grasses then
__________________________________
shrubs, then larger
__________________________________
and larger trees.
__________________________________
The trees finally
become hardwood
__________________________________
trees which are long
__________________________________
lived trees. Trees are
__________________________________
getting bigger.
Softwood trees Hardwood trees