The resilience of ecosystems

An ecosystem is an intricate network of living organisms, each trying to survive, thrive and procreate.

When an ecosystem is disrupted the effects often occur gradually, the speed of which is directly correlated to the severity of the disturbance.

The number of different species, and the number of individuals within these species, will impact how fast the ecosystem will be disturbed and thereby its robustness, this is based on what the species does over long periods of time, and not on daily fluctuations.

For example an ecosystem with just a single primary-producer is prone to collapse with a single disease or other disruption.

This is due to several things, how resilient each species is, how long a generation is and the severity and duration of the disturbance.

In the lakes around Astakos IV, the disturbance to the ecosystem was minimized by factors such as the presence of other primary producers, the ability of several consumers to leave the lake-system, as well as the human's decision to restore the water flow in a timely manner.