Natural Processes
Natural processes shape the land, create soil and topsoil, influence the water supply, and help determine the plants and animals that live in each natural community. Some natural processes act on large scales and affect more than one natural community at a time.
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In This Community
Important natural processes in the Rich Boulderfield Forest include these:
- Microclimates (Ecobit: How Topography Creates Microclimates)
- Canopy gaps
- Processes that lead to soil formation
- Steep slope processes
In the Broader Landscape
The natural processes above are also important in some other natural communities. For example, in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, two natural communities (see chart below) occur on steep, rocky sites with soil that is less acidic than other areas.
These natural communities can be grouped into a larger unit that ecologists refer to as the Circumneutral Cliffs and Talus Ecological System in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. An ecological system is a group of several natural communities that share some features of physical setting and many of the same natural processes.
By extension, they may also share many of the same plant and animal species.
For example, both of these natural communities contain northern spicebush, marginal woodfern, zigzag goldenrod, and pale jewelweed.
Ecobit: Natural Processes Are Bigger Than Natural Communities