The given statement is true.
The pioneer species refers to the hardy species that are the first to spread on to the previously destructed or disrupted ecosystems. They start a chain of ecological succession, which eventually results in a more bio-diverse steady-state ecosystem.
Let us consider the example of an area affected by a volcano eruption. In such cases, all the vegetation gets destroyed, and even after the cooling and hardening of lava, it would not be easy for the plants to thrive due to the absence of soil.
In such instances, the ecological succession initiates by the introduction of certain pioneer species like fungi, bacteria, and lichens. These pioneer species possesses the tendency to thrive on rocks and minerals.
