ln the process of succession, a climax community is established when

Step 1: Analyze the question The question asks when a climax community is established during ecological succession.

Step 2: Explain the concept Ecological succession is the gradual, orderly replacement of one community by another over time in an area. It usually goes through these stages:

1. Pioneer stage (colonizers): The first organisms, such as lichens and mosses, settle on bare rock or soil.
2. Intermediate (seral) stages: Grasses, shrubs and then small trees replace earlier communities. Each stage changes the environment (for example, by adding soil and humus) and makes it suitable for the next.
3. Climax community: The final stage. The community is stable and self-perpetuating, and it is in equilibrium with the environment and climate. In the Nigerian context, the rainforest in the southern zone and the savanna in the middle belt are examples of climax vegetation.

Step 3: Evaluate the options

• A. A stable community is achieved. Correct. The climax community is defined by stability, with no further major change in species composition.
• B. The colonizers accommodate the new corners (comers). This describes an early or intermediate stage, not the end point.
• C. The colonizers are wiped out. This happens in the intermediate stages as the pioneers are replaced, and it is not what defines a climax.
• D. The first inhabitants settle down. This is the pioneer stage, the start of succession.
• E. The new comers dominate the original inhabitants. This describes the replacement that occurs during the intermediate stages.

Step 4: Answer The climax community is established when a stable community is achieved, which is option A.

Exam tip: Remember the keyword for climax: stable, as in "final, stable and self-sustaining." Whenever you see "climax community" in a question, think equilibrium and stability. "Pioneer" means first, and "climax" means last and stable.