Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Habitat Fragmentation

Habitat Fragmentation

Habitat fragmentation describes the division of a more extensive, continuous habitat into smaller, discontinuous areas. Human activities such as land conversion, as well as slower geological processes leading to changes in the physical environment, are the two leading causes of habitat fragmentation. The fragmentation process typically follows the same steps: perforation, dissection, fragmentation, shrinkage, and attrition.

Ecological Disturbance

Ecological Disturbance

An ecological disturbance is a temporary disruption in the environment resulting from abiotic, biotic, or anthropogenic factors, causing a pronounced change in an ecosystem. The impact of an ecological disturbance, which can depend on its intensity, frequency, and spatial distribution, plays a significant role in shaping the species diversity within the ecosystem.Ecological disturbances can be caused by an event as small as the trampling of underbrush to an incident as wide-ranging as a forest...

Threats to Biodiversity

Threats to Biodiversity

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...

Keystone Species

Keystone Species

Measures of species biodiversity, such as richness (i.e., the number of species present) and evenness (i.e., their relative abundance), describe an ecological community’s structure. Many factors affect community structure, including abiotic factors (e.g., sunlight and nutrients), disturbances (e.g., fire or flood), species interactions (e.g., predation or competition), and chance events (e.g., foreign species invasion). Certain species—such as keystone species—also play a pivotal role in the...

Ecological Succession

Ecological Succession

Ecological succession is influenced by the processes of facilitation, inhibition, and toleration. Facilitation occurs when early successional species create more favorable ecological conditions for subsequent species, such as enhanced nutrient, water, or light availability. In contrast, inhibition happens when early successional species create unfavorable ecological conditions for potential successive species, such as limiting resource availability. In some cases, later successional species...

Conservation of Declining Populations

Conservation of Declining Populations

Conservation of declining population focuses on ways of detecting, diagnosing, and halting a population decline. The approach uses methods to prevent populations from going extinct.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same journal

Microbial contributions to host life history trade-offs.

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

Same journal

Can habitat modification in the native range promote invasion?

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

Same journal

The host-microbiome dimension of ecological regime shifts.

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

Same journal

The emerging field of wild animal welfare science.

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

Same journal

Integrating nutritional mutualists into the evolution of defense.

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

Same journal

Formation of three great Asian plateaus, climate change, and biodiversity: (Trends Ecol. Evol. 40, 970-982; 2025).

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Measuring the Structure, Composition, and Change of Underwater Environments with Large-area Imaging

Measuring the Structure, Composition, and Change of Underwater Environments with Large-area Imaging

Published on: April 18, 2025

Forest dynamics in Hawaii.

D Mueller-Dornbois¹

¹Dieter Mueller-Dombois is at the Botany Dept, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 3190 Maile Way, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822, USA.

Trends in Ecology & Evolution

|January 14, 2011

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Hawaiian forests show Metrosideros polymorpha dominance on new lava flows. Long-term survival in montane forests involves dieback and evolution of M. polymorpha varieties.

More Related Videos

The Hawaii Protocol for Scientific Monitoring of Coffee Berry Borer: a Model for Coffee Agroecosystems Worldwide

The Hawaii Protocol for Scientific Monitoring of Coffee Berry Borer: a Model for Coffee Agroecosystems Worldwide

Published on: March 19, 2018

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Published on: June 7, 2024

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Measuring the Structure, Composition, and Change of Underwater Environments with Large-area Imaging

Measuring the Structure, Composition, and Change of Underwater Environments with Large-area Imaging

Published on: April 18, 2025

The Hawaii Protocol for Scientific Monitoring of Coffee Berry Borer: a Model for Coffee Agroecosystems Worldwide

The Hawaii Protocol for Scientific Monitoring of Coffee Berry Borer: a Model for Coffee Agroecosystems Worldwide

Published on: March 19, 2018

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Field Collection and Laboratory Maintenance of Canopy-Forming Giant Kelp to Facilitate Restoration

Published on: June 7, 2024

Area of Science:

Ecology
Botany
Island Biogeography

Background:

Hawaiian Islands offer a natural age sequence for ecological studies, from recent volcanic activity to ancient landscapes.
Forest development on new basaltic lava flows is a key process in island ecosystems.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the successional dynamics of indigenous Hawaiian forests.
To understand the mechanisms behind the long-term persistence of Metrosideros polymorpha in montane rainforests.

Main Methods:

Observational study of forest development across different ages of Hawaiian islands.
Analysis of plant species composition and dominance over time.
Identification of ecological processes influencing forest structure.

Main Results:

Metrosideros polymorpha forms early, dominant stands on recent lava flows in lowland rainforests.
In seasonal environments, M. polymorpha is succeeded by species like Acacia koa and Sophora chrysophylla.
M. polymorpha maintains dominance in montane rainforests over millions of years.

Conclusions:

Forest succession in Hawaii is influenced by environmental factors like rainfall seasonality.
Long-term persistence of M. polymorpha in montane rainforests is attributed to periodic canopy disturbance and evolutionary adaptation.
The study highlights the resilience and adaptive capacity of M. polymorpha in Hawaiian ecosystems.