SYNECOLOGY: WHAT IT STUDIES, EXAMPLES, APPLICATIONS - ENVIRONMENT - 2025

The sinecología or community ecology studies the structure of communities and the interactions that occur between species. It takes into account both the interaction of the species with each other, and with their physical environment.

This discipline studies the main ecological interactions between species, relevant processes such as the exchanges of matter and energy through the ecosystem and ecological succession.

Ecological relationships. Source: Mark Wipfli, Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. Public domain. / Public domain

Synecological studies are applicable in the ecological restoration of areas disturbed by human action. For this, the knowledge about the secondary succession that occurs naturally in these ecosystems is taken into account.

Similarly, synecology constitutes the ecological basis of epidemiology, a central discipline in public health. The synecological basis is especially relevant when dealing with the study of the development of infectious-contagious diseases.

What does synecology study?

There are two basic approaches in this science, one is descriptive synecology and the other is functional synecology. Additionally, quantitative synecology supports the previous ones by processing data on the density of organisms, frequency, amount of matter transferred or energy, among others.

This data is then processed through statistics to try to discover trends and derive relevant conclusions from them. In practical terms, both approaches work together, starting with describing the community and then defining its functioning.

- Descriptive synecology

Descriptive synecology addresses the description of the composition and structure of the community, that is, what species make it up and what place they occupy in it. The latter refers to the structure of the community, establishing the abundance, density, frequency and distribution of each organism.

Through descriptive synecology, the distribution of species in communities and how abundant they are is known, which allows us to know if a species is threatened and to design conservation programs.

- Functional synecology

For its part, functional synecology goes beyond the descriptive and addresses the dynamics of the community, in terms of its functioning as a system. For this, it establishes the relationships between species and with the physical environment, including the tracing of food webs as a relevant element.

The latter is essential to understand the complex relationships of matter and energy exchange between species.

Food web. Source: Roddelgado / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

To gain knowledge of this flow of matter and energy, synecology pays special attention to the ecological interactions that occur in the community. The main interactions are:

Competition

This interaction is established between individuals of the same species and between species, by requiring the same environmental factor. These factors can be space, water, light, food, couple or any other.

Predator-prey

In this case it is a food chain relationship, where one species represents the food of another, such as the leopard and the gazelle.

Mutualism

It is a cooperative relationship, in which two species mutually benefit, for example a plant that provides shelter for a species of ant. In turn, this species of ant protects the plant from herbivorous species.

Commensalism

In this case, only one of the species involved in the interaction benefits. While the other species neither benefits nor harms, as is the case with epiphytic plants (which use trees as support).

Amensalism

In this type of interaction, one organism is harmed by the action of another, without the latter being altered in any way. For example, when a plant secretes substances into the soil that prevent the growth of other species (allelopathy).

Examples

Synecological study of the grasslands in the lower course of the Imperial River (Cautin, Chile)

This synecological study focused on the grasslands of the lower reaches of the Imperial River in the Ninth Region of Chile. These meadows have been formed by the action of the human being through cultivation and overgrazing.

During the study, researchers described the stages of succession, from annual grasses to perennial grasses. Likewise, they determined the main factors that influence the distribution of plants, which were salinity and soil moisture.

They also managed to detect the effect of overgrazing by generating soil compaction and a decrease in available phosphorus. All this synecological information generated serves as the basis for the management and recovery programs of the area.

Synecological analysis of the mountain mesophilic forest of Omiltemi, Guerrero (Mexico)

An example of the use of synecology to understand the composition and dynamics of forests is the study of the Mexican mountain mesophilic forest. This is a unique plant formation in the world due to the peculiarity of its mixed character.

Forest in Mexico. Source: Raul21940 / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

These forests combine flora from North America (Holartic) with the flora from the Neotropics from Central and South America. Synecological studies have made it possible to know the species present and their distribution patterns according to their environmental affinities.

In this sense, it was established that the Holarctic species such as Pinus ayacahuite, Quercus uxoris and Carpinus caroliniana, are established in exposed areas. While tropical species such as Zanthoxylum melanostictum and Trichilia hirta, are located in more humid areas.

Synecology Applications

Ecological succession: the basis for ecosystem restoration

Ecological succession is a sequence of changes of plant communities over time. This process has two levels, the primary succession when organisms colonize an area originally without vegetation and the secondary succession.

Ecological succession. Source: Ben Sutherland / CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)

Secondary succession occurs when an ecosystem is disturbed, either by a natural event or by human action and once the disturbance has ceased, the recovery of the ecosystem begins.

When an ecosystem is altered by human action, an attempt is made to mitigate the problem and the ecological solution is to restore it. In other words, trying to restore the ecosystem to its original condition, which is known as ecological restoration.

To achieve this in complex ecosystems such as a tropical forest, it is necessary to apply reforestation methods that mimic ecological succession. Most attempts to reforest areas without taking into account the synecology of the area and especially the plant succession, fail.

Therefore, studying the ecological succession of the communities in the natural recovery of the forest, allows establishing a successful restoration program.

epidemiology

The knowledge of the dynamics established between a parasite and its host is the product of synecological studies. In turn, this knowledge is the basis of epidemiology when it addresses the development of an infectious disease in time and space.

Epidemiology requires knowing the interaction between the parasite, for example a bacterium or a virus, and the host, for example the human being.

For example, some coronaviruses that affect populations of wild animals such as bats undergo mutations and go on to affect humans. In turn, these viruses manage to come into contact with humans due to alterations caused by humans themselves.

In addition, the disturbance of habitats in which wild animals come into contact with human populations. This is the case in some regions of Asia where both wild and domestic live animals are sold in public markets.

Coronavirus

The epidemic of the virus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) has its origin in bats. Similarly, the source of the new coronavirus strain that causes Wuhan (China) pneumonia called 2019-nCov is suspected to be the large Chinese horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum).

Once in humans, viruses exhibit their own epidemiological characteristics, infecting larger and larger populations. Each virus has a defined rate of infection, incubation, and mortality. The basis of the study of all these aspects by epidemiology is population ecology or synecology.

References

1. Calow, P. (Ed.) (1998). The encyclopedia of ecology and environmental management.
2. Margalef, R. (1974). Ecology. Omega editions.
3. Meave, J., Soto, MA, Calvo-Irabien, LM, Paz-Hernández, H. and Valencia-Avalos. S. (1992). Synecological analysis of the mountain mesophilic forest of Omiltemi, Guerrero. Bulletin of the Botanical Society of Mexico.
4. Odum, EP and Warrett, GW (2006). Fundamentals of ecology. Fifth edition. Thomson.
5. Ramirez, C., San Martin, C., Ramirez, JC and San Martin, J. (1992). Sinecological study of the prairies in the lower course of the imperial river (Cautin, Chile). Agrarian Science and Research (Chile).
6. Raven, P., Evert, RF and Eichhorn, SE (1999). Biology of plants.
7. Walker, LR and Del Moral, R. (2003). Primary Succession and Ecosystem Rehabilitation. Cambridge University Press.