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Communities
and Community Dynamics
The collection of different species that interact in a variety of
ways in a defined patch of land is called a community. Communities are
always changing and are subject to "succession", which may be a complete
changeover to another collection of plants or a more incremental series of
species losses and gains. Loss of one species may provide opportunities
for changes in populations of existing species or gain of new species.
Communities may migrate and disperse as their environmental conditions
change. The rate of change compared to the ability of the community to
move determines whether the community will survive under such changing
conditions.
PREVIOUS: Ecological Processes