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COLONISATION
takes place in newly formed areas
Example: an environment of sand and
stones
The first colonisers are called pioneer
species.
PIONEER SPECIES
Have special adaptations
Can survive on dry and nutrient poor soil
Usually are hardy plants which have dense root
systems to bind sand particles, water and humus
Short life cycle
When they die, their remains add to the humus content
of the soil
Pioneer species establish conditions that are more
conducive to other species that is called successor
species.
SUCCESSOR SPECIES
Grow bigger than the pioneer species
Most of these plants have small wind-
dispersable seeds (enable them to spread and
grow rapidly
The successor species also change the
structure and quality of soil, making it more
conducive for larger plants to grow
The plants that grow over the remaining of
successor species are called dominant
species.
DOMINANT SPECIES
Can grow faster and can out-compete the
pioneers which grow at a slower rate
As time passes, the dominant species modify
the environment which allows larger trees to
grow
Gradual process through which one community
changes its environment so that it is replaced
by another community is called succession.
CLIMAX COMMUNITY
Ecological succession leads to a relative
stable community which is equilibrium
with its environment.
The stable community is called a climax
community.
A climax community is a stable
community that undergoes little or no
change in its species composition.
Example of pioneer species: lalang,
grass
Successor species: Herbaceous
Dominant species: Shrubs
Climax community: Rainforest
COLONISATION & SUCCESSION IN
MANGROVE SWAMPS
Pioneer species: Avicennia sp and
Sonneratia sp
Characteristics: long underground cable
roots that support them in soft and
muddy soil
The roots also produce hundreds of thin,
vertical breathing roots called
pneumatophores
Pneumatophores
COLONISATION & SUCCESSION IN
MANGROVE SWAMPS
Successor species: Rhizophora sp.
Has prop roots
These aerial roots anchor plants to the
mud and play important role in aeration
Aeration can also take place through
lenticels on the tree bark.
Prop Roots
COLONISATION & SUCCESSION IN
MANGROVE SWAMPS
Dominant species: Bruguiera sp.
Has buttress root forms loop that
protrude from soil to trap more silt and
mud.
This modifies the soil structure gradually.
Over time, terrestrial plants such as Nypa
sp., Pandanus sp., begin to replace the
Bruguiera sp.