Apes Jedeal

Primary succession and secondary successions are very different.

Primary succession begins with an essentially lifeless area where there

is no soil, these areas are mostly bare rock exposed by retreating glacier

or severe soil erosion, newly cooled lava, abandoned highway parking

lot or a newly created shallow pond or reservoir. Depending mostly on

the climates, it takes natural processes several hundred to thousands of

years to produce fertile soil. Whereas Secondary succession begins in

an area where the natural community of organisms has been disturbed,

removed, or destroyed but some soil or bottom sediment remains,

some areas promoting secondary successions are abandoned

farmlands, burned or cut forests, heavily polluted streams and land that

has been dammed or flooded. Because some soil or sediment is

present, new vegetation usually begins to germinate within a few

weeks. Going into primary successions, soil formation begins when

species like wind-dispersed lichens and mosses which can withstand the

lack of moisture and soil nutrients and hot or cold temperature

extremes found in such habitats attach themselves to inhospitable

patches of bare rock.