Climax vegetation facts for kids

In ecology, climax community, or climatic climax community, is a historic term for a biological community of plants, animals, and fungi which, through the process of ecological succession in the development of vegetation in an area over time, have reached a steady state.

This equilibrium was thought to occur because the climax community is composed of species best adapted to average conditions in that area. The term is sometimes also applied in soil development.

The idea of a single climatic climax, which is defined in relation to regional climate, originated with Frederic Clements in the early 1900s. The first analysis of succession as leading to something like a climax was written by Henry Cowles in 1899, but it was Clements who used the term "climax" to describe the idealized endpoint of succession.

Images for kids

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  Climax community in Tongass National Forest, Alaska, a Sitka spruce-western hemlock forest. The primary disturbances are floods, landslides, and salt spray, all of which occur only in small areas, allowing for a relatively stable equilibrium.

See also

In Spanish: Comunidad clímax para niños