Linking Species and Ecosystems: Organisms as Ecosystem Engineers

Abstract

Ecosystem engineers are organisms that directly or indirectly modulate the availability of resources to other species, by causing physical state changes in biotic or abiotic materials. In so doing they modify, maintain, and create habitats. Autogenic engineers (e.g corals, trees) change the environment via their own physical structures. Allogenic engineers (woodpeckers, beavers) change their environment by transforming living or non-living materials from one physical state to another, mechanically or otherwise.