Question

The succession involves the replacement of one community by another due to modification of the environment by the communities themselves.

• A. Allogenic succession
• B. Autogenic succession
• C. Retrogression succession
• D. Secondary succession

Hint:

Remember the prefixes: 'Auto-' means self-driven (by the community itself), whereas 'Allo-' means driven by external abiotic or environmental factors.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Ecological succession is the progressive, predictable replacement of one plant community by another over time.
Succession is classified into different types based on the primary drivers of environmental modification.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us define the types of ecological succession listed in the options:
1. Autogenic succession is driven entirely by the biotic components of the ecosystem.
The resident plant community modifies its own local environment over time (e.g., by accumulating organic matter, changing soil pH, increasing shade, or altering humidity).
These modifications make the habitat less suitable for the current species to regenerate, but more suitable for new, competitor species to establish.
As a result, the existing community is replaced by a new one through its own environmental feedback loops.
2. Allogenic succession is driven by external abiotic forces, such as volcanic eruptions, storms, siltation, climate change, or fire, rather than the resident plants themselves.
3. Retrogressive succession occurs when a disturbance degrades a highly developed community back to a simpler, less complex ecological state.
4. Secondary succession refers to the re-establishment of a community in an area where a previous ecosystem was cleared by a disturbance, but the soil remained intact.

Step 3: Final Answer:
The succession driven by the community's own environmental modification is Autogenic succession, corresponding to option (B).