Seral communities in
secondary succession can be seen in a recently logged
coniferous forest. During the first two years,
grasses,
heaths and
herbaceous plants such as
fireweed will be abundant. After a few more years
shrubs will start to appear; and about six to eight years after clearing, the area is likely to be crowded with young
birches. Each of these stages can be referred to as a seral community. In the far western part of North America,
chaparral plant communities are typically controlled by periodic natural wildfires. In the southern portion of the
Coast Ranges and in
Southern California chaparral,
toyon is often a locally dominant taxon in seral communities transitional between
coastal sage scrub. == See also ==