EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -A disturbance, such as a wild fire, destroys the forest. The fire burns the forest to the ground. The fire leaves behind empty, but not destroyed, soil. Grasses and other herbaceous plants grow back first.

Detailed explanation-2: -Secondary succession occurs when the severity of disturbance is insufficient to remove all the existing vegetation and soil from a site. Many different kinds of disturbances, such as fire, flooding, windstorms, and human activities (e.g., logging of forests) can initiate secondary succession.

Detailed explanation-3: -In secondary succession, a previously occupied area is re-colonized following a disturbance that kills much or all of its community. A classic example of secondary succession occurs in oak and hickory forests cleared by wildfire. Wildfires will burn most vegetation and kill animals unable to flee the area.

Detailed explanation-4: -Harvesting, Logging and Abandonment of Crop Land The abandonment of land previously utilized for crops is a common cause of human-induced secondary succession. Land which has been intensively cultivated is often nutrient poor, with the nutrients having been repeatedly removed through harvest or logging.

Detailed explanation-5: -The causes of these disturbances may be natural or human-made. Secondary succession may occur in abandoned crop fields, cutover forests, areas damaged by wind storms or floods, and other previously occupied regions. The conditions that result in secondary succession are usually harsh.