Similarly, any change in flora and fauna in their boundaries is the result of environmental changes, and hence they serve as barometers for changes occurring in the environment. Thereby any shifting of boundaries is now believed to be a result of the climatic change. For instance, wetland areas can absorb pollutants, thus preventing them from seeping into a river.īecause of these features, ecotones are shown to serve as sensitive indicators of global changes. Since ecotones exhibit greater genetic diversity, it may serve as bridges of gene flow from one population to another.įurther ecotones act as buffer zones by protecting the neighboring ecosystem from environmental damages. Hence the abundance of the introduced organism in an ecotone can reveal the type of biome and efficiency of two communities sharing the space. Since two communities integrate into an ecotone, different species live and compete for common resources. Therefore ecotone results in the formation of diverse ecosystems. This is recorded by ecologists to understand the food chain and survival of the organism. In cases where two communities survive after crossing their ecotone, this leads to species richness and speciation. This increase in biodiversity is often referred to as the edge effect. Since the two areas are highly influenced by two bordering ecosystems, a higher density of organisms and a variety of species can be found in these regions. Such factors thus lead to the spatial mass effect, where certain organisms cannot self-sustain when they go across their ecotone. When organisms exhibit migration or new plants are formed, they can obscure the ecotone. On the other hand, ecotones are highly distinct but are less stable and hence have lower species richness.Įcotones are not only formed naturally through abiotic factors but also can be created due to human interferences such as clearing of forest areas or irrigation. Therefore ecocline can be a thermocline, chemocline, halocline, or pycnocline (variations in density of water induced by temperature and salinity).Įcocline transitions cannot be distinguished clearly but have more stable conditions and hence exhibit species richness in higher plants. This includes changes in physical and chemical composition such as pH, salinity, soil conditions, and temperatures. The following factors highly influence ecotones:Įcotones are often associated with ecocline, which is a physicochemical transition between two ecosystems.
A typical example of an ecotone is the region where amphibians are present, represents both terrestrial and aquatic life. ecotone The movement into a bare area is likewise continuous, though it is necessarily not mutual, and hence there is no ecotone during the earlier stages. Here researchers look for differences in colors and height in plants.Īnother key feature of an ecotone is the change of species, where organisms exhibit differences in their adaptations. This is primarily because of differences in the accessibility to light. This type of ecotones can be observed in estuaries, where boundaries are characterized by differences in the heights of plant species present in a different area. The further physical appearance of a plant species is a key indicator of an ecotone. For instance, a change in the colors of grasses or plant life is an indication of the existence of ecotone. The word ecotone is derived from Greek words, which means ecology in tension.Įcotones exhibit distinct transitions in their vegetation, indicated by clear lines between two communities along their boundaries. Though ecotone appears as a gradual blend of the two communities, it is characterized by a sharp boundary line.
The transitional zone may be local or regional, where the area can be between a field and a forest or amidst a forest and a grassland ecosystem, respectively. This is the region where two communities meet and integrate. It does not store any personal data.Ecotone is a transitional ecosystem between two biological communities. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies.
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