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Stable ecological systems abound in nature, and the scientific literature has documented them to a great extent. Scientific studies mainly describe grassland plant communities and microbial communities. [4] Nevertheless, it is important to mention that not every community or ecosystem in nature is stable (for example, wolves and moose on Isle ...
A bear with a salmon. Interspecific interactions such as predation are a key aspect of community ecology.. In ecology, a community is a group or association of populations of two or more different species occupying the same geographical area at the same time, also known as a biocoenosis, biotic community, biological community, ecological community, or life assemblage.
The stable ocean hypothesis (SOH) is one of several hypotheses within larval fish ecology that attempt to explain recruitment variability (Figure 1; [1] Table 1). The SOH is the notion that favorable and somewhat stable physical and biological ocean conditions, such as the flow of currents and food availability, are important to the survival of young fish larvae and their future recruitment.
For example, ecosystems can be quite different if situated in a small depression on the landscape, versus one present on an adjacent steep hillside. [ 9 ] : 39 [ 10 ] : 66 Other external factors that play an important role in ecosystem functioning include time and potential biota , the organisms that are present in a region and could ...
From shallow waters to the deep sea, the open ocean to rivers and lakes, numerous terrestrial and marine species depend on the surface ecosystem and the organisms found there. [28] The ocean's surface acts like a skin between the atmosphere above and the water below, and harbours an ecosystem unique to this environment.
For example, seasonal flooding and drying may occur with yearly changes in precipitation, causing seasonal changes in the wetland community that maintain it at a stable state. [5] However, unusually heavy rain or unusually severe drought may cause the wetland to enter a positive feedback loop where it begins to change in a linear direction. [ 44 ]
For example, sediment may determine the presence of aquatic plants, but aquatic plants may also trap sediment, and add to the sediment through peat. The amount of dissolved oxygen in a water body is frequently the key substance in determining the extent and kinds of organic life in the water body.
Coral reefs also support a huge community of life, including the corals themselves, their symbiotic zooxanthellae, tropical fish and many other organisms. Much attention in marine biology is focused on coral reefs and the El Niño weather phenomenon. In 1998, coral reefs experienced the most severe mass bleaching events on record, when vast ...