This article is about ecosystems. For the use of the term in physics, see Patch dynamics (physics).
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Patch dynamics is an ecological perspective that the structure, function, and dynamics of ecological systems can be understood through studying their interactive patches. Patch dynamics, as a term, may also refer to the spatiotemporal changes within and among patches that make up a landscape. Patch dynamics is ubiquitous in terrestrial and aquatic systems across organizational levels and spatial scales. From a patch dynamics perspective, populations, communities, ecosystems, and landscapes may all be studied effectively as mosaics of patches that differ in size, shape, composition, history, and boundary characteristics.
The idea of patch dynamics dates back to the 1940s when plant ecologists studied the structure and dynamics of vegetation in terms of the interactive patches that it comprises. A mathematical theory of patch dynamics was developed by Simon Levin and Robert Paine in the 1970s, originally to describe the pattern and dynamics of an intertidal community as a patch mosaic created and maintained by tidal disturbances. Patch dynamics became a dominant theme in ecology between the late 1970s and the 1990s.
Patch dynamics is a conceptual approach to ecosystem and habitat analysis that emphasizes dynamics of heterogeneity within a system (i.e. that each area of an ecosystem is made up of a mosaic of small 'sub-ecosystems').[1]
Diverse patches of habitat created by natural disturbance regimes are seen as critical to the maintenance of this diversity (ecology). A habitat patch is any discrete area with a definite shape, spatial and configuration used by a species for breeding or obtaining other resources. Mosaics are the patterns within landscapes that are composed of smaller elements, such as individual forest stands, shrubland patches, highways, farms, or towns.
^Pickett, Steward T.A.; White, P.S. (1985). The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and Patch Dynamics. Academic Press. ISBN 0123960215.
interactive patches. Patchdynamics, as a term, may also refer to the spatiotemporal changes within and among patches that make up a landscape. Patchdynamics is...
directed at understanding the spatial-temporal patterns of kelp patches. Not only do such dynamics affect the physical landscape, but they also affect species...
with significantly less interaction between patches than within a patch. Population dynamics within a patch were simplified to the point where only presence...
structure recognized as old-growth. This process is referred to as patchdynamics or gap dynamics and has been described across many types of forests, including...
consider interactions amongst different trophic levels to predict community dynamics; food chains are often the base level for theory development of trophic...
Jianguo; Loucks, Orie L. (1995). "From Balance of Nature to Hierarchical PatchDynamics: A Paradigm Shift in Ecology". The Quarterly Review of Biology. 70 (4):...
predators of its own. Apex predators are usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics, meaning that they occupy the highest trophic levels. Food chains are often...
(individuals that leave a patch) and immigrants (individuals that move into a patch). Metapopulation models examine patchdynamics over time to answer questions...
variation of ecotones often form due to disturbances, creating patches that separate patches of vegetation. Different intensity of disturbances can cause...
patterns. These are the patchdynamics, species sorting, source–sink dynamics (or mass effect) and neutral model frameworks. Patchdynamics models describe species...
(2008). "Decomposers in disguise: mycorrhizal fungi as regulators of soil C dynamics in ecosystems under global change". Functional Ecology. 22 (6): 955–963...
rescued by an adjacent source patch or environmental conditions become more favorable. Metapopulation models examine patchdynamics over time to answer potential...
unit of the landscape that change and fluctuate, a process called patchdynamics. Patches have a definite shape and spatial configuration, and can be described...
demographic and environmental information to project future population dynamics. The probability assigned to a PVA is arrived at after repeating the environmental...
between eating all the food in a patch for immediate energy, or moving to a new patch and leaving the plants in the first patch to regenerate for future use...
McCluney K, Pelini S (December 2019). "Effects of Detritivores on Nutrient Dynamics and Corn Biomass in Mesocosms". Insects. 10 (12): 453. doi:10.3390/insects10120453...
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