Structure and Pattern Management Implications Home Definitions and descriptions Change and dynamics

ProcessesElementsTransformationFragmentationEcosystem

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Other ecosystem processes

Extinction and colonisation rates
Connectivity
Supersaturation

Extinction and colonisation rates

Colonisation, extinction and recolonisation rely on the ability of species to get to and from patches.

Connectivity

Connectivity is important in determining flows across the landscape. Corridors can vary in their degree of connectivity, as can the matrix. Corridors are of value for movement of species and materials to ensure persistence of species but they can also facilitate the spread of disease, pests and fire, and increase predation, which can increase the risk of extinction (Forman, 1995).

Supersaturation

Sometimes overcrowding can occur in patches, or what is known as supersaturation. This can result in changes in competition and predation, which eventually lead to altered fecundity.

 

 

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