Plant ecology: Difference between revisions
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{{Main|Herbivory|Plant defense against herbivory}} |
{{Main|Herbivory|Plant defense against herbivory}} |
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An important ecological function of [[plant]]s is that they produce organic |
An important ecological function of [[plant]]s is that they [[Primary production|produce]] [[organic compound]]s for [[herbivore]]s in the bottom of the [[food web]]. |
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==Distribution== |
==Distribution== |
Revision as of 19:29, 16 December 2010
Plant ecology is a subdiscipline of ecology which studies the distribution and abundance of plants, the interactions among and between members of plant species, and their interactions with their environment. Plant ecology has its roots both in plant geography and in studies of the interactions between individual plants and their environment.
Broadly speaking, the scope of plant ecology encompasses plant ecophysiology, plant population ecology, community ecology, ecosystem ecology, landscape ecology and global ecology.
Most plants are rooted in the soil, and often they reproduce vegetatively in a way that makes it difficult to distinguish individual plants of the same species. These characteristic features of plants necessitate a somewhat different scientific methodology than used in e.g. animal ecology, but the different subdiciplines of ecology is integrated in ecosystem ecology studies.
Structure and function
Life forms
Strategies
Herbivory
An important ecological function of plants is that they produce organic compounds for herbivores in the bottom of the food web.
Distribution
Abundance
The ecological success of a plant species in a specific environment may be quantified by its abundance, and depending on the life form of the plant different measures of abundance may be relevant, e.g. density, biomass, or plant cover.
The change in the abundance of a plant species may be due to both abiotic factors, e.g. climate change, or biotic factors, e.g herbivory or interspecific competition.
See also