Succession is the process of a community developed over time, which involves species in one stage being replaced by different species. Primary succession, (fig 5-4, pg 87) is the change in species composition over time in an environment that has not previously been inhabited by organisms. No soil exists when primary succession begins. Bare rock surfaces, such as recently formed volcanic lava and rock scraped clean by glaciers. Figure 5-4, (a) - (c), page 87 in the text Environment are examples of primary succession. A study of Glacier Bay, AL, showed that following retreat of the glacier, the ground was first colonized by mosses and lichens, then dwarf willows, then alders, then Sitka spruce. After about 200 years, a stable spruce-hemlock f
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