Succession, Development, the Climax, and the Complex Organism: An Analysis of Concepts: Part II. Development and the Climax

Phillips, John

doi:10.2307/2256152

Cited by 47 publications

(27 citation statements)

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“…The original concept of Clements (1916Clements ( , 1936, further developed by Phillips (1934Phillips ( , 1935aPhillips ( , 1935b, that the climax can be regarded as a superorganism, or organized functional whole, generally found little support. Gleason ( 1926Gleason ( , 1939 expressed the diametrically opposed view that the climax represented the sum of the individual characteristics of a fortuitous aggregation of plants as they found expression under the prevailing environmental conditions.…”

Section: The R-and K-configurationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Homeostatic Characteristics of Single Species Fish Stocks in Arctic Lakes

Johnson¹

1983

Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci.

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Freshwater Institute, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, 501 University Crescent, Winnipeg, Man. R3T 2N6 JOHNSON, L. 1983. Homeostatic characteristics of single species fish stocks in Arctic Bakes.Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 40: 987-1024.The results of investigations on the fish stocks of seven Arctic lakes covering a period of 23 yr are described. These lakes have remained largely undisturbed since their formation in late glacial times; all but one are completely autonomous and of comparatively small size. Such lakes provide a unique opportunity for the development and testing of conceptual models. In all cases the only fish species present is Arctic cham, Salvelinus alpinus. Length frequency distributions derived from gfllnet catch curves are shown to be, within reasonable limits, representative of the actual populations in the lake, and not artifacts of the sampling procedure, Length frequency curves show a unimodal or bimodal distribution and this structure, in the absence of perturbation, appears to remain constant indefinitely. Individuals are of great age but age-at-length is highly variable. Age and size structure are shown to be comparable with the age and size structure of the dominant tree species in a climax forest; it is concluded that forces of great generality fashion these configurations. It is hypothesized that all species tend to move towards a state of least energy dissipation; this can be most readily seen in the dominant species at the climax in an autonomous system. The dominant species is characterized by large individual size, a high degree of uniformity, high total biomass, great mean age, indeterminate age-at-death, and a low incidence of replacement stock. After severe perturbation it is shown that the c h m stock returns to a state of least dissipation without oscillation. Absence of oscillation during the return to the initial state, combined with the long-term stability shown in control lakes, indicates the presence ~f an effective damping mechanism; this in turn indicates the existence of organization within the stock as a whole. Organization develops through an interactive mechanism described under the doctrine of homeokinesis, which is responsible for energy equipartitioning and the maintenance of uniformity. These concepts help to explain phenomena observed in more complex systems and help our understanding of ecosystem functioning. JOHNSON, L. 1983. Homeostatic characteristics of single species fish stocks in Arctic lakes.Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 40: 987-1024.form. "'Char Lake" referred to later in the text is a statutory name not to be interfered with except by due process of law.

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Section: The R-and K-configurationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Homeostatic Characteristics of Single Species Fish Stocks in Arctic Lakes

Johnson¹

1983

Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci.

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“…Fire is probably a dominant factor in maintaining grasslands in areas that are climatically capable of growing either woody plants or grasses (Humphrey, 1962;Frost, 1984Frost, , 1996 and in most instances, fire may retard the development of vegetation (Phillips, 1935;Frost, 1985Frost, , 1996. Seedlings of various plant species rapidly grow into gaps created by fire.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decline of the mountain acacia, Brachystegia glaucescens in Gonarezhou National Park, southeast Zimbabwe

Tafangenyasha

2001

Journal of Environmental Management

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“…We have therefore attempted to define the rate of secondary succession by structural criteria, which do not depend on one's views about such controversial questions as mechanisms of succession or its progressiveness vs. progressivenessand-regressiveness (see e.g. Phillips 1935, Odum 1969.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%