SIMPLIFYING THE COMPLEX - THE PARADIGMS OF ECOLOGICAL FUNCTION AND STRUCTURE

Ecosystem change has usefully been seen as controlled by two functions: exploration and conservation. Analysis of a series of ecosystems - managed and unmanaged - indicates there are two additional functions. One is that of creative destruction where the tightly bound accumulation of biomass and nutrients is suddenly released by agents such as forest fires, insect pets, or intense grazing. The second function is one of renewal where released material is mobilized to become available for the next exploitive phase. That pattern is discontinuous and is dependent on the existence of multistable states. Resilience and recovery is emphasized during the release and renewal sequence and stability and productivity during the exploration and conservation sequence. Such studies of resilience are being to combine with hierarchy theory and with the theory of dissipative structures to deepen our understanding of change and how to manage change.