Climax (ecology)

See also: Climax

In the field of the ecology, the climax indicates the final state of a ecological Succession; the stable state more under the abiotic conditions existing. It is a theoretical state; actually various stages of the ecological succession coexist.

When this state is reached, energy and the resources are theoretically only used to maintain this state.
Le term can get busy for a ecosystem (one then speaks about ecological climax ).
Lorsqu' a Biome reaches its development climacic, one refers to the vegetation by speaking about “ climacic vegetation ”.

Relative concept

The climax refers to a stable theoretical state (in balance dynamic) and succeeded, but we know today that any medium is in constant evolution because all the components of the medium also evolve/move them, and more and more under the influence of the anthropic actions (one then speaks the pseudo one or méta-climax). On landscape scales, any medium is mozaïque growing old zones and zones (in natural Régénération, following disturbances of the type windfallen wood or with a Natural disaster for the forest mediums for example).

Climax and old human activities:

In the areas with poor and/or acid, or fragile grounds (semi-arid zones) the anthropic actions such as chronic Deforestation, Culture on denshering, Overgrazing, harvest of Litter S ou/et of the forest herbaceous carpet for the animals or like agricultural manure, as of the mining activities (acid Drainage + relictuelle Pollution by the Heavy metals) can involve effects of impoverishment, acidification and impoverishment of the soil, irreversible on human scale of time.

As example, in Europe the Overexploitation of certain siliceous mediums (Vosge S, (moors of the Plate of Fréhel in Brittany.) destroyed acid brown grounds still rich in biogenic salts to transform them into very impoverished ic grounds Podzol and acids by involving the disappearance of judged species " climaciques" forests and clearings by replacing them by permanent moors (on podzol with iron pan). It is then another medium (Lande, paratourbeuse moor, Désert) which holds place of climax, one speaks then about “ Para-climax ” to indicate these mediums artificially blocked in their evolution towards the forest or the normal stage climacic.
Le paraclimax indicates also a climax consisted species introduced by the Man (domestic species, invasive species.); For example a Moor with Callune degraded and maintained like such long enough for there by the Pasture or the denshering constitutes a paraclimax .
Dans certain cases (ex: Moors of the plate of Helfaut in Pas-de-Calais in France), the general eutrophication of the peripheral mediums and the disappearance of the herbivores seems able to start again a climacic dynamics leading to the forest, but with a certain loss of Biodiversité.

The concept of climax is pedagogically practical in ecology of the landscape, but it applies sometimes with difficulty to the ground. It for that is sometimes discussed in the scientific community, certain researchers preferring not to use this term with the profit of the simple concept of ecological succession.

See too

  • Équifinalité ;
  • Homéothélie ;
  • Homeostasis;
  • Homéorhésie .

See too

External bonds

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