334 INTRODUCTION TO PLANT GEOGRAPHY [CHAP. 



association is called an associes. It is a more or less advanced serai 

 community dominated by more than one species, and is usually 

 on its way to becoming an association. Commonly each association, 

 having more than one dominant, is composed of two or more 



(3) Faciations (or else Consociations — see below). A faciation is 

 a climax community with two or more, but less than the total number 

 of, associational dominants. The serai counterpart of the faciation 

 is the fades. Another local variant of the association is the lociation, 

 which varies particularly in the composition of the important sub- 

 dominants and influents. When there is only one dominant to 

 each climax community we usually have 



(4) Consociations. These are smaller unit communities whose 

 single dominant still has the life-form characterizing the formation. 

 Such eca commonly occur on diiferent soils, examples being the 

 separate Oak and Beech consociations which make up the European 

 Oak-Beech association. They may conveniently be named by adding 

 -etum to the stem of the Latin name of the genus of the dominant, 

 e.g. Quercetum (a consociation dominated by an Oak, Onercus) or 

 Fagetum (dominated by a Beech, Fagus). The serai counterpart of 

 a consociation, such as a reed-swamp dominated by a single species, 

 is the consocies. Commonly recognized within a consociation or 

 association are 



(5) Societies. These are minor (but still often apparently climax) 

 communities that are commonly recognized within major eca, and 

 usually owe their existence to local variations of habitat. They are 

 dominated by one or more species other than the association domin- 

 ants, and commonly are of lower life-form than these, being frequently 

 subdominants of the higher econ, as in aspect (seasonal) and layer 

 (stratal) societies. Thus a society represents a dominance within 

 a dominance, whose dominant species is (or are) subordinate when 

 we consider the association or consociation as a whole. Examples are 

 the local and often very limited edaphic societies in many woodlands 

 of temperate regions. The serai counterpart of the society is the 

 socies, which, if it consists merely of two or more invading species 

 without evident associates, may be called a colony. Within societies 

 etc., there may be 



(6) Clans. These represent the lowest climax unit, consisting 

 each of a small aggregation of a single very locally but overwhelmingly 

 dominant species. The serai equivalent is the family, derived from 

 the multiplication and gregarious growth of a single immigrant. 



