Pilar M2L2 Assignment1 Ecosystem Change Review

Changing Biological Communities – Disturbance and Succession1 Name : Eric pilar Date: 6/17/2019 A biological community consists of all the types of organisms that live in a given area. The different types of organisms in a community interact and influence each other in multiple ways. Two important types of interaction are consumption (e.g. some birds eat insects) and competition (e.g. plants compete for sunlight). Complete this table to give additional examples of consumption and competition for the organisms in a forest in the northeastern US (e.g. trees, bushes, deer, squirrels, spiders and insects). Type of Interaction Examples Bird eating insect Consumption Bushes and trees competing for sunlight Competition A biological community often appears to stay the same from one year to the next. However, over periods of decades or centuries, many biological communities show major changes. A biological community may be disrupted by a disturbance such as a flood, volcanic eruption or human activity (e.g. removing trees and plowing to prepare a field for farming). After the disturbance ends, a biological community typically changes by natural processes; this type of change is called succession. Often, succession gradually restores a biological community so it becomes similar to the community that existed before the disturbance. For example, when a farm field in the northeastern US is no longer used for farming, succession often gradually restores a forest community. Succession on abandoned farm fields in the northeastern US