Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
sIn ecology, a disturbance is a temporary change in average environmental conditions that causes a pronounced change in
an ecosystem. Outside disturbance forces often act quickly and with great effect, sometimes resulting in the removal of large amounts of biomass. Ecological disturbances include fires, flooding, windstorm, insect outbreaks, as well as anthropogenic disturbances such as trampling, forest clearing, and theintroduction of exotic species.[1] Disturbances can have profound immediate effects on ecosystems and can, accordingly, greatly alter the naturalcommunity. Because of these and the impacts on populations, these effects can continue for an extended period of time.
Contents
[hide]
1 Disturbance conditions 2 Disturbance as part of a cycle 3 Species adapted to disturbance 4 Importance 5 See also 6 References 7 External links
Disturbance conditions[edit]
Specific conditions are often required for disturbances. With natural disturbances such as fire and flooding, conditions are influenced mainly by climate, weather, and location.[1] Fire disturbances will only occur in areas where there is low precipitation, some form of ignition (typically lightning), and enough flammable biomass to allow spread. Conditions often occur as part of a cycle and disturbances may be periodic. Other disturbances, such as those caused by humans and invasive species, can occur anywhere and are not necessarily cyclic.
pines grow into the canopy and replace those lost. Younger pines are often able to ward off beetle attacks but, as they grow older, pines become less vigorous and more susceptible to infestation. [3] This cycle of death and re-growth creates a temporal mosaic of pines in the forest.[4] Similar cycles occur in association with other disturbances such as fire and windthrow.
Importance[edit]
Biological diversity is dependent on natural disturbance. The success of a wide range of species from all taxonomic groups is closely tied to natural disturbance events such as fire, flooding, and windstorm. As an example, many shade-intolerant plant species rely on disturbances for successful establishment and to limit competition. Without this perpetual thinning, diversity of forest flora can decline, affecting animals dependent on those plants as well. A good example of this role of disturbance is in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) forests in the western United States, where surface fires frequently thin existing vegetation allowing for new growth. If fire is suppressed, douglas-fir (Pesudotsuga menziesii), a shade tolerant species, eventually replaces the pines. Douglas-firs, having dense crowns, severely limit the amount of sunlight reaching the forest floor. Without sufficient light new growth is severely limited. As the diversity of surface plants decreases, animal species that rely on them diminish as well. Fire, in this case, is important not only to the species directly affected but also to many other organisms whose survival depends on those key plants.[8]