The underlying biological processes that govern many ecological systems can create very long periods of transient dynamics. It is often difficult or impossible to distinguish this transient behaviour from similar dynamics that would persist indefinitely. In some cases, a shift from the transient to the long-term, stable dynamics may occur in the absence of any exogenous forces. Recognizing the possibility that the state of an ecosystem may be less stable than it appears is crucial to the long-term success of management strategies in systems with long transient periods. Here we demonstrate the importance of considering the potential of transient system behaviour for management actions across a range of ecosystem organizational scales and natural system types. Developing mechanistic models that capture essential system dynamics will be crucial for promoting system resilience and avoiding system collapses.

支配许多生态系统的潜在生物过程可以产生非常长的瞬态动力学。通常很难或不可能将这种瞬态行为与无限期持续存在的类似动态区分开来。在某些情况下，在没有任何外力的情况下，可能会发生从瞬态到长期稳定动态的转变。认识到生态系统的状态可能不如表面上那么稳定的可能性对于在具有较长过渡期的系统中管理策略的长期成功至关重要。在这里，我们证明了考虑跨一系列生态系统组织规模和自然系统类型的管理行动的瞬态系统行为的潜力的重要性。