What best describes secondary succession?

Secondary succession is best described as a process that occurs in areas that have been previously inhabited and have experienced disturbances that altered the ecosystem but did not completely eliminate it. This type of succession allows for a quicker recovery and establishment of a new biological community because the existing soil and some organisms may still be present.

In scenarios such as forest fires or floods, where the disturbance is significant but the soil and seeds remained intact, secondary succession can occur relatively quickly. This process is characterized by the regrowth of plant life and the re-establishment of animal populations that depend on those plants, ultimately leading to the restoration of the ecosystem to a stable state.

The other options refer to conditions or processes that do not accurately represent secondary succession. For example, describing secondary succession as occurring only after extreme disturbances in uninhabited environments aligns more closely with primary succession. Immediate following after a major volcanic eruption describes a situation that might involve primary succession since such an eruption often creates new land devoid of life. Additionally, stating that succession happens over a short period with no ecological changes misrepresents the dynamic nature of ecological succession, which is characterized by gradual changes in species composition and community structure over time.