The forest would soon recover. Human disturbances were thought to have more serious and long lasting effect. But if a forest was unaltered by human presence, it would eventually develop into a dynamic equilibrium - a climax forest. The Disturbed Forest Other ecologists have a somewhat different view of a forest. Rather than succeeding toward a climax steady state, forests are continually set back to an earlier successional stage.
All forests exist in a state of perpetual disturbance.
In this view of a forest, succession may proceed toward the climax forest, but the true climax is seldom, if ever, achieved. Disturbances to forests are so many in number and so frequent in the forests of the midwest that there may be no such thing as a perfect, stable forest. Probably more disturbed forest than climax forest. The same natural disturbances are present today. Some of these disturbances are quite obvious, while others are much more subtle.