Primary succession on land
By: edited by J. Miles, D.W.H. Walton.
Contributors: Miles, John, 1941-; Walton, D. W. H.
Series: Special publication number 12 of the British Ecological Society; Special publication ... of the British Ecological Society ;; no. 12.
Publisher: Blackwell Scientific Publications
Published: 1993
Place of publication: Oxford; Boston
Language: eng
Number of pages: 309
Subjects: Ecological succession -- Congresses.
Description: In the past, research into succession has concentrated on the widespread communities of grassland, herbfield and forest. However, the initial stages of a community are associated with algae, lichens and mosses, and despite their importance as primary colonizers, little attempt has been made to include the microbial community and its effects within the framework of primary succession.

Accepting that it is at the microscopic level that any consideration of primary succession must start, this volume draws together microbiologists, ecologists, botanists and zoologists into a more coherent discussion of the early stages of community development. New techniques allow observation and experimentation at the microbial level, and the ecological opportunities offered by the Mount St Helens eruption have been exploited to shed more light on the processes of primary succession.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Papers from the symposium held at the University of Liverpool during 5-7 Sept. 1989.