Community

“A biotic community is a naturally occurring assemblage of plants and animals that live in
the same environment, are mutually sustaining and interdependent, and are constantly
fixing and dissipating energy.”
However, the different species in a biotic community share a common environment and
their relationships are based on direct or indirect functional interactions. The nature of
relationship is determined by the requirements of the members of the community. Biotic
community organisation results from interdependence and interaction among populations
of different species in a habitat.
Large number of biotic communities found in nature due to two specific reasons. They are
as follows:
(i) Existence of diverse habitats with characteristic environmental conditions and
(ii) (ii) Co-occurrence of different species whose tolerance ranges overlap with the
environmental condition obtained in that habitat. When similar habitat conditions
are repeated at another location, the same biotic community gets established
there.
Characteristics of Biotic Community: Each biotic community consists of very diverse
organisms belonging to different kingdoms of living things. The number of species and
abundance of population in communities also vary greatly. The organisms in a community
depend upon each other as well as upon the non-living environment for food, shelter and
reproduction.
Species Composition: The kinds of plants and other organisms present in a community
indicate its species composition, which differs from one community to another. Sometimes,
in the same community, there may be seasonal variation in plant species.
Each species of community has got definite range of tolerance towards the physical and
biological environmental conditions of the habitat. The range of environment a species can
tolerate is called its ecological amplitude. The nature of community of a particular habitat is
determined by the species, and physical and biotic influences prevailing in the locale of
community.
Dominance: A biotic community may have major categories of growth forms, such as trees,
shrubs, herbs and mosses. Out of hundreds of species present in the community, relatively
only a few exert a major controlling influence due to their large size, numbers of activities.
The phenomenon is called dominance.
“Dominant species are those which are highly successful ecologically and which determine
to a considerable extent the conditions under which the associated species must grow.”
The dominance in the community may be the result of co-action between two or more
species. Different communities are generally recognized and named on the basis of
dominant species occurring in them. For example, a forest community in which pine trees
are dominant is called pine forest.
Grassland represents a community which has grass species dominating over the other
herbs. Sometimes, communities are named after environmental factors, such as desert
community, marine community, mangrove vegetation, etc.
Stratification: Every biotic community has a vertical layering or stratification of organisms
or environmental conditions. A number of examples can be cited to support the concept of
community stratification from different habitats.
In grassland community three strata, namely:
(a) Subterranean,
(b) Floor and
(c) Herbaceous may be recognized.
The subterranean stratum contains the roots of the principal vegetation and provides
permanent shelter to bacteria, fungi, protozoans, nematodes, earthworms, ringworms and
several other invertebrates.
The floor stratum consists of basal parts of the vegetation, including the rhizomes of grass
plants. In this stratum, generally the insects, spiders, reptiles and rodents are present.
The herbaceous stratum of grassland community is represented by upper parts of grasses
and herbs. Several types of insects, birds and grazing mammals are included in this stratum.
In a forest community, five vertical strata are present. They are:
(a) Overstorey stratum,>40 ft
(b) Understorey stratum, form 20ft to 40
(c) Transgressive stratum, 4-20
(d) Seedling stratum, ( soil level to lower limit of TS)
(e) Subterranean stratum. (depth of two to three meters)
A typical forest may have an overstorey stratum comprised of trees that are more than
forty feet in height. These trees make a canopy.
Just beneath this canopy there is an understory stratum that extends from twenty feet in
height to a short distance below the overstorey.
A transgressive stratum extends from four feet to twenty feet or more and comprises of
shorter shade loving species.
The seedling stratum begins at the soil level and extends to the lower limit of the
transgressive stratum.
The subterranean stratum in the forest community is moist and contains a large amount of
humus. It is very prominent up-to a depth of two to three meters. Each stratum has its own
group of animals. However, most animals can move from one stratum to another in search
of food or in response to many biotic factors, such as insects, snails, birds and squirrels. The
animals found above the soil include turtles, snakes, some birds, insects and a variety of
mammals, such as rabbits, deer, wolves and foxes. The animals living in humus soil are
beetles, fly larvae, spiders, annelids, antipodes, mites, protozoans, nematodes and some
springtails.
In pond community, vertical stratification is very little.
However, in deep ponds and lakes three strata:
(a) Littoral zone,
(b) Limnetic zone and
(c) Profundal zone can be recognized.
The littoral zone comprises shallow water region and is occupied by rooted plants.
The limnetic zone occupies the depth up-to which the light penetrates and inhabited by
planktons, nektons and neustons.***
In profundal zone, there is no penetration of light, and therefore, it has no photosynthetic
organisms.
Species Diversity: The biotic community is a natural assemblage of a large number of plant
and animal species in an area. However, in any particular habitat there is no considerable
variation in environmental condition, the plants growing together in a community show
unique uniformity in their behaviour. Vegetation, therefore, is reflection of a climate and,
in general, widely separated areas having similar climate have similar aspects of landscape.
Some communities, for example, tropical rain forest and coral reef community, show high
species diversity with many different kinds of species living at each trophic level. Some
community areas have limits but more often the community boundaries are hard to define.
A clearly distinguished area or a type of area with uniform habitat conditions and
supporting characteristic type of vegetation is termed biotype.( Biotype is different
from ecotype in the sense that the group of individuals in a biotype possess a
similar genetic constitution with some differences in their survival or attack
strategy.) -Ecotype is a term used in the field of ecology to describe a genetically
different variety of populations within a species. Their difference may have
arisen due to the separation by geographical barriers. -Ecotype is also
referred to as a race within a species. This is due to a significant difference in
phenotypic characters only due to the environment heterogeneity. The
difference in genetic makeup is not colossal enough to restrict them from
interbreeding freely.)
 Ecotone and Edge Effect: The zone where two or more different communities meet and
integrate, is called transition zone or ecotone. This zone of integration may be narrow or
wide, local (e.g., a zone between field and a forest) or regional (e.g., the transition between
forest and grass land). Ecotone contains few species from both communities.
The total number of species is often greater in the ecotone than in the adjoining
communities. The ecotone or transition zone exhibits a shift in dominance of the
conspicuous species of both sides. It may also include a number of highly adaptable species
that tend to colonize such transitional areas. Because of this, the variety (i.e., species
diversity) and density of life is often greatest in such areas.
This potential for the ecotone to act as a habitat for species found in neither major
community is called edge effect.
Thus the tendency of increased variety and density of some organisms at the community
border is known as edge effect. The organisms that occur primarily, or most abundantly, or
spend the greatest amount of their time in junctions between communities are called edge
species.
A common example of the edge effect in action can be seen in those species of owl that live
in or near ecotones between forests and grasslands. They depend on forest trees for
nesting and do their hunting in the grassland, where they depend on field rodents for food.
In man-made communities such as agricultural fields, the ecotone between the field and
the forest act as refuge for species formerly found in the ploughed area, as well as for other
plants such as weeds.
Ecotones of this type are also the prime habitat of many species of insects, game birds, and
mammals.
Keystone Species: The species, which have much greater influence on community
characteristics, relative to their low abundance or biomass, are known as keystone species.
Such species play a vital role in controlling the relative abundance of other species. When
keystone species is removed, it causes serious disruption in the functioning of the
community.
For example, in the tropical rain forests, the different species of figs are the keystone
species as they produce large quantity of fruits. During the time of food scarcity, these fruits
are consumed by monkeys, bats, birds, etc. Thus, by protecting the fig trees, the animals
dependent on them are also conserved.
Climax community Climax community is the stable end product of successional sequence or
sere. It is a community that has reached a steady state of species composition, structure
and energy flow, under a particular set of environmental conditions. Steady state indicates
the dynamic nature of the climax.
Also the end of successional change does not mean that community development has come
to an end. As has been stated above, climax community is always in a state of flux and its
structure undergoes changes due to birth, death and growth processes. However, these
changes are less dramatic than the community transformations observed during succession.
The characteristics of a climax community are:
1. The climax community is able to tolerate its own reaction.
2. It tends to be mesic (medium moisture content) rather than xeric (dry) or hydric (wet).
3. The climax community is more highly organised.
4. The climax community with its more complex organisation has large number of species
and more niches.
5. The organisms of earlier successional stages tend to be smaller, shorter-lived with a
higher biotic potential (r-selected). In contrast, the species of climax community tend to be
relatively large, long lived and with a low biotic potential (K-selected)
(The capacity of a species to reproduce under ideal environmental
conditions is known as its biotic potential.)
6. In climax community, energy is at a steady state (net primary production is zero whereas,
in immature stage of succession, gross primary production tends to be greater than
community respiration, signifying accumulation of energy.
(NPP it's the rate at which energy is stored as biomass by plants or other primary
producers and made available to the consumers in the ecosystem.)
( GPP, is the rate at which solar energy is captured in sugar molecules during
photosynthesis (energy captured per unit area per unit time). Producers such as
plants use some of this energy for metabolism/cellular respiration and some for
growth (building tissues).
7. Immature ecosystems are temporary while in climax community the stability is high. 8.
Climax communities show less broader changes and are more resistant to invasions than
immature ecosystems.
There are following theories of the climax:
1. Mono-climax Theory: According to the mono-climax theory of succession (Clements,
1936), every region has one climax community toward which all communities are
developing. He believed that climate was the determining factor for vegetation and the
climax of any area was solely a function of its climate. Various terms such as sub-climax, dis-
climax, post-climax, and pre-climax are used to describe the deviations from the climatically
stabilized climax. These communities, controlled by topographic, edaphic (soil), or biotic
factors are regarded as exceptions by the supporters of the mono-climax view.
2. Poly climax Theory: This theory was proposed by Tansley (1939) and later supported by
Daubenmire (1966). The poly-climax theory of succession holds that many different types of
vegetation as climax communities may be recognized in a given area. These will be
climaxes, controlled by soil moisture, soil nutrients, activity of animals and other factors.
According to this theory, climate is only one of the several factors, any of which may have a
controlling influence on the structure and stability of the climax. This allows many climaxes
in a climate region and is, therefore, called the poly-climax theory. The difference between
this theory and the mono-climax theory is largely a matter of emphasis on which factor is
responsible for the stability of a climax. According to Krebs (1994), the real difference
between two theories lies in the time factor of measuring relative stability. The climate
varies on an ecological time scale as well as on a geological time scale. Succession in a
sense, then, is continuous because we have variable vegetation approaching a variable
climate.
3. Climax-pattern Theory: Whittaker (1953) emphasized that a natural community is
adapted to the whole pattern of environmental factors in which it exists;
the major factors are: genetic structure of each species, climate, site, soil, biotic factors
(activity of animals), fire, and wind, availability of plant and animal species, and chances of
dispersal.
According to this theory, climax communities are patterns of populations varying according
to the total environment.
There is thus no discrete number of climax communities and no one factor determines the
structure and stability of a climax community.
Whereas the mono-climax theory allows for only one climatic climax in a region and the
polyclimax theory allows several climaxes, the climax-pattern hypothesis allows a
continuity of climax types varying gradually along environmental gradients and not clearly
separable into discrete climax types.
4. Climax as Vegetation: According to Egler (1954) one can say that “climaxes” in a broad
sense are nothing more than totality of vegetation, itself He, thus, favors the study, of
vegetation, as it is, with careful observations to explain and interpret past, present, and
future conditions of particular communities. We may conclude from these theories that the
end point of succession is climax which is in itself not completely stable.
The climate of an area has overall control on the vegetation; but within each of the broad
climatic zones there are many modifications caused by soil, topography, and animals which
lead to many climax situations. Climax communities do not necessarily represent a halt to
successional change.

*** Plankton” term is used for all the organisms found in marine as well as freshwater,
which are non-motile and cannot swim against the water current. They are drifted by water
currents. Plankton is collectively used to refer to organisms such as bacteria, algae,
crustaceans, protozoans, coelenterates and molluscs and members from other phylum as well.

 Planktons vary widely in size, from 0.2 𝝁m to more than 20 cm. From microscopic
bacteria to large organisms such as jellyfish
 Their distribution varies with the availability of light and nutrients
 Large aquatic organisms are dependent on planktons and feed on them
 They have a significant role to play in the ecosystem. Phytoplankton account for 50%
of the total oxygen (O2) produced by photosynthesis.

Pleuston, Nekton, Neuston, Benthos

Plankton is different from nekton, that comprises animals that are strong swimmers, and
benthos, that creep, and burrow entities on the seafloor. Huge floating seaweeds and different
multicellular algae are pleustons not planktons. Pleustons are life forms thriving at the air
and water’s interface. Neustons, on the other hand, are entities which rest or swim on the
surface of water. An example is the Alga Ochromonas.
Plankton differs from other related terms used for various aquatic species, e.g. –
Pleuston Definition – It refers to floating organisms.
They thrive in the thin surface layer found at the interface of water and air of water bodies.
They are macroscopic and float by buoyancy. Example of Pleuston – Few cyanobacteria,
Salvinia etc.
Nekton Definition and Examples – It is used to refer to actively swimming organisms.
These aquatic entities can swim and independently move in water currents. The chordate
Nekton are said to include different species of bony fishes, cartilaginous fishes like the
sharks, different reptiles (snakes, crocodiles in saltwater) and even mammals like the seals,
whales etc. The molluscs nektons are ocotopods and squids.
Neuston Meaning – organisms that are present on the water surface.
Neustons are entities living near water surface. Typically, they thrive in the surface films of
oceans, lakes and slow moving streams. Hyponeuston (entities living immediately under the
surface of water) and epineuston (entities living above surface of water but immersed in
water) are two types of Neuston. There is a reduction in the density of these entities with an
increase in the turbulence.
Benthos Definition – organisms present on the sea bed that are sessile, burrowing, creeping,
etc.
These entities are found at the bottom of freshwater bodies (streams, rivers and lakes). Most
of these entities do not show a backbone and are referred to as invertebrates. Some of the
common benthic invertebrates are sponges, anemones, corals, sea stars, worms, crabs, sea
urchins etc.
Benthic entities could be sessile or attached to some firm surface such as rocks or could be
mobile, freely
Types of Plankton
Planktons are categorised on the basis of lifecycle, size and trophic level.

 On the basis of the lifecycle, planktons are classified as:

1. Holoplankton – Organisms, which remain in planktonic form for their entire lifetime,
e.g. algae, jellyfish, etc.
2. Meroplankton – Organisms, who live as plankton at only some stages of their
lifecycle, e.g. larvae of starfish, worms, sea urchins, fish, etc.

 On the basis of size, planktons are classified as:

1. Megaplankton – they are large in size > 20 cm, e.g. Jellyfish, tunicates pyrosomes,
etc.
2. Macroplankton – their size ranges from 2 to 20 cm
3. Mesoplankton – includes organisms with size 0.2 to 20 mm
4. Microplankton – their size varies from 20 to 200 𝝁m, e.g. most of the phytoplankton,
protozoans and large protists
5. Nanoplankton – size ranges from 2 to 20 𝝁m, e.g. protists, diatoms and algae
6. Picoplankton – size ranges from 0.2 to 2 𝝁m, e.g. bacteria, chrysophytes
7. Femtoplankton – includes marine viruses with size < 0.2 𝝁m

 On the basis of various trophic levels and characteristics, planktons are classified as:

1. Phytoplankton – They are autotrophs or producers, e.g. cyanobacteria, algae,

diatoms, dinoflagellates, etc.
2. Zooplankton – It includes primary consumers, who feed on other plankton, e.g. small
protozoans, larvae of fish and other animals
3. Mycoplankton – It includes fungi
4. Bacterioplankton – It includes bacteria and is important for nutrient recycling
5. Virioplankton – includes viruses
6. Mixotrophs – They act as both producers and consumers according to environmental
conditions. When there is abundant light and nutrients available they perform
photosynthesis and in the absence of limited resources, they feed on other plankton to
fulfil their nutrient requirements