English for Ecology(Text)

8/13/2019 English for Ecology(Text)

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Ecology is a broad biological science and can thus be divided into manysub-disciplines using various criteria. For example, one such categorization, based on overall complexity (from the leastcomplex to the most), is:

Behavioral ecology , hich studies the ecological and evolutionary basis for animal behavior, focusing largely atthe level of the individual!

"opulation ecology (or autecology), hich deals ith the dynamics of populations ithin species, and the

interactions of these populations ith environmental factors! #ommunity ecology (or synecology) hich studies the interactions bet een species ithin an ecological

community! $cosystem ecology , hich studies ho flo s of energy and matter interact ith biotic elements of ecosystems !

$cology can also be classified on the basis of: the primary %inds of organism under study, e.g. animal ecology, plant ecology, insect ecology! the biomes principally studied, e.g. forest ecology , grassland ecology, desert ecology , benthic ecology! the geographic or climatic area, e.g. arctic ecology, tropical ecology the spatial scale under consideration, e.g. molecular ecology , macroecology , landscape ecology !

&pecialized branches of ecology include, among others: applied ecology , the practice of employing ecological principles and understanding to solve real orld problems

(includes agroecology and conservation biology )! biogeography , the study of the geographic distributions of species ! chemical ecology , hich deals ith the ecological role of biological chemicals used in a ide range of areas

including defense against predators and attraction of mates! conservation ecology , hich studies ho to reduce the ris% of species extinction! ecological succession , hich focuses on understanding directed vegetation change! ecophysiology hich studies the interaction of physiological traits ith the abiotic environment! ecotoxicology , hich loo%s at the ecological role of toxic chemicals (often pollutants , but also naturally occurring

compounds)! evolutionary ecology or ecoevolution hich loo%s at evolutionary changes in the context of the populations and

communities in hich the organisms exist! fire ecology , hich loo%s at the role of fire in the environment of plants and animals and its effect on ecological

communities! functional ecology, the study of the roles, or functions, that certain species (or groups thereof) play in an

ecosystem! global ecology, hich examines ecological phenomena at the largest possible scale, addressing

macroecological 'uestions! landscape ecology , hich studies the interactions bet een discrete elements of a landscape ! macroecology , the study of large scale phenomena! marine ecology, and a'uatic ecology, here the dominant environmental milieu is ater! microbial ecology , the ecology of micro-organisms! microecology, the study of small scale phenomena! paleoecology , hich see%s to understand the relationships bet een species in fossil assemblages! restoration ecology , hich attempts to understand the ecological basis needed to restore impaired or damaged

ecosystems!
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t stems from the fact that many microorganisms are not easily obtainable as cultured strains in the laboratory, hichould allo for indentification and characterisation. t also stems from the development of "#4, hich allo s for rapidamplification of genetic material...... . Macroecology is the subfield of ecology hich deals ith the study of relationships bet een organisms and theirenvironment at large spatial scales to characterise and explain statistical patterns of abundance, distribution anddiversity. +he term as coined by 5ames Bro n of the 6niversity of *e 7exico and Brian 7aurer of 7ichigan &tate6niversity in a /080 paper in Science ...... . Landscape ecology is a subdiscipline of ecology and geography that is the study of spatial variation in interested inthe of elements in the landscape (such as fields, hedgero s, oodlots, rivers or to ns) and ho their distributionaffects the distribution and flo of energy and individuals in the environment ( hich, in turn, may influence thedistribution of the elements themselves). Applied ecology is a subfield ithin ecology hich considers the application of the science of ecology to real- orld(usually management) 'uestions.

3spects of applied ecology include: 4estoration ecology 4angeland management nvasive species management #onservation biology 9abitat management Biodiversity conservation "rotected areas management 3gro-ecosystem management

Agroecology is the science of applying ecological concepts and principles to the design, development, andmanagement of sustainable agricultural systems.

3groecology loo%s at both the socio-economic impacts and the environmental impacts of agricultural systems, andta%es a critical vie of modern industrial agricultural tecni'ues.

Conservation biology is the study and preservation of habitat for the purpose of conserving biodiversity.

+he term conservation biology refers to the science and sometimes is used to encompass also the application of thisscience. n simple terms, conservation biology is scientific study of the phenomena that affect the maintenance, loss,and restoration of biological diversity.

Biogeography is the science hich deals ith 'uestions of species patterns of distribution and the process thatresulted in such patterns. +he patterns of species distribution at this level can usually be explained through acombination of historical factors - speciation, extinction, continental Chemical ecology is the study of the chemicals involved in the interactions of living organisms. t focuses on theproduction of and response to signaling molecules, toxins, and other organic compounds.

Related fields

3nalytical chemistry Biochemistry $cology ;enetics

Conservation ecology covers a very ide range of sub ects, basically, any part of ecology that has a bearing onconservation. +he terms Ecology and Conservation are fre'uently used interchangeably, but, although ecologists arefre'uently also conservationists, this does not necessarily have to be the case.


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Ecological succession , a fundamental concept in ecology, is the process by hich a natural community moves from asimpler level of organisation to a more complex community. &uccession is a natural process that occurs after someform or disturbance hich simplifies the system. $cological succession is usually differentiated into

Ecoto icology is a discipline of ecology, hich loo%s at the ecological role of toxic chemicals (often pollutants, but alsonaturally occurring compounds).

Pollutants are substances hich directly or indirectly damage us or the environment. 7any of the compounds hichare dangerous to the environment can also be harmful to us in the long-term and come from nuclear-fossil sources, li%epetroleum.

"ollutants can cause the destruction of areas of the environment hich are protective to us.

Evolutionary ecology lies at the intersection of ecology and evolutionary biology. t approaches the study of ecology ina ay that explicitly considers the evolutionary histories of species and the interactions bet een them. #onversely, itcan be seen as an approach to the study of evolution that incorporates an understanding of the interactions bet eenthe species under consideration.

Fire is a component of the environment. Fire ecology is the study of the interaction of fire ith living things.

+he effects of fire are due to a complex combination of:-

/. the fre'uency of fire


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ob ectives of restoration studies and pro ects are defined by the reference state hich is selected.

Ecology , or ecological science , is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of living organisms and hothese properties are affected by interactions bet een the organisms and their environment . +he environment of anorganism includes both the physical properties, hich can be described as the sum of local abiotic factors li%e climate and geology , as ell as the other organisms that share its habitat . +he term oekologie as coined in /8>> by the;erman biologist $rnst 9aec%el ! the ord is derived from the ;ree% oikos ( household ) and logos ( study )?therefore,ecology means the study of the household of nature .

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$cology is usually considered a branch of biology , the general science that studies living beings . @rganisms can bestudied at many different levels, from proteins and nucleic acids (in biochemistry and molecular biology ), to cells (incellular biology), to individuals (in botany , zoology , and other similar disciplines), and finally at the level of populations ,communities, and ecosystems , to the biosphere as a hole! these latter strata are the primary sub ects of ecologicalin'uiries. $cology is a multi-disciplinary science. Because of its focus on the higher levels of the organization of life onearth and on the interrelations bet een organisms and their environment , ecology dra s heavily on many otherbranches of science, especially geology and geography , meteorology , pedology , chemistry , and physics . +hus, ecologyis said to be a holistic science, one that over-arches older disciplines such as biology hich in this vie become sub-disciplines contributing to ecological %no ledge.

3griculture, fisheries, forestry, medicine and urban development are among human activites that ould fall ithinArebbs= (/0


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"opulation ecology (or autecology ), hich deals ith the dynamics of populations ithin species, and theinteractions of these populations ith environmental factors!

#ommunity ecology (or synecology ) hich studies the interactions bet een species ithin an ecologicalcommunity!

Dandscape ecology , hich studies the interactions bet een discrete elements of a landscape ! $cosystem ecology , hich studies the flo s of energy and matter through ecosystems ! ;lobal ecology, hich loo%s at ecological 'uestions at the global level, often as%ing macroecological 'uestions.

$cology can also be sub-divided on the basis of target groups: 3nimal ecology, plant ecology, insect ecology!

$cology can also be sub-divided from the perspective of the studied biomes: 3rctic ecology (or polar ecology ), tropical ecology, desert ecology

(temperate zone ecology could also exist as a distinct sub-field, but ecology as a hole has an over helminglytemperate bias, so the sub-field is redundant).

&panning all of the above is: $volutionary ecology .

#istory of ecology

Main article: History of ecology

Fundamental principles of ecology

Biosphere and biodiversity

Main articles: Biosphere , Biodiversity , 6nified neutral theory of biodiversity

For modern ecologists, ecology can be studied at several levels: population level (individuals of the same species),biocoenosis level (or community of species), ecosystem level, and biosphere level.

+he outer layer of the planet $arth can be divided into several compartments: the hydrosphere (or sphere of ater), thelithosphere (or sphere of soils and roc%s), and the atmosphere (or sphere of the air). +he biosphere (or sphere of life),sometimes described as the fourth envelope , is all living matter on the planet or that portion of the planet occupied bylife. t reaches ell into the other three spheres, although there are no permanent inhabitants of the atmosphere.4elative to the volume of the $arth, the biosphere is only the very thin surface layer hich extends from //,EEE metersbelo sea level to /2,EEE meters above.

t is thought that life first developed in the hydrosphere, at shallo depths, in the photic zone . 7ulticellular organisms

then appeared and colonized benthic zones . +errestrial life developed later, after the ozone layer protecting livingbeings from 6 rays formed. Giversification of terrestrial species is thought to be increased by the continents driftingapart , or alternately, colliding. Biodiversity is expressed at the ecological level (ecosystem), population level(intraspecific diversity), species level (specific diversity), and genetic level. 4ecently technology has allo ed thediscovery of the deep ocean vent communities. +his remar%able ecological system is not dependant on sunlight butbacteria, utilising the chemistry of the hot volcanic vents, are at the base of its food chain.

+he biosphere contains great 'uantities of elements such as carbon , nitrogen and oxygen . @ther elements, such asphosphorus , calcium , and potassium , are also essential to life, yet are present in smaller amounts. 3t the ecosystemand biosphere levels, there is a continual recycling of all these elements, hich alternate bet een the mineral andorganic states.

Hhile there is a slight input of geothermal energy, the bul% of the functioning of the ecosystem is based on the input of

solar energy. "lants and photosynthetic microorganisms convert light into chemical energy by the process ofphotosynthesis , hich creates glucose (a simple sugar) and releases free oxygen . ;lucose thus becomes thesecondary energy source hich drives the ecosystem. &ome of this glucose is used directly by other organisms forenergy. @ther sugar molecules can be converted to other molecules such as amino acids . "lants use some of thissugar, concentrated in nectar to entice pollinators to aid them in reproduction.
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#ellular respiration is the process by hich organisms (li%e mammals ) brea% the glucose bac% do n into itsconstituents, ater and carbon dioxide , thus regaining the stored energy the sun originally gave to the plants. +heproportion of photosynthetic activity of plants and other photosynthesizers to the respiration of other organismsdetermines the specific composition of the $arth=s atmosphere, particularly its oxygen level. ;lobal air currents mix theatmosphere and maintain nearly the same balance of elements in areas of intense biological activity and areas of slightbiological activity.

Hater is also exchanged bet een the hydrosphere, lithosphere, atmosphere and biosphere in regular cycles. +heoceans are large tan%s, hich store ater, ensure thermal and climatic stability, as ell as the transport of chemicalelements than%s to large oceanic currents.

For a better understanding of ho the biosphere or%s, and various dysfunctions related to human activity, 3mericanscientists simulated the biosphere in a small-scale model, called Biosphere .

$he ecosystem concept

Main article: $cosystem

+he first principle of ecology is that each living organism has an ongoing and continual relationship ith every otherelement that ma%es up its environment. 3n ecosystem can be defined as any situation here there is interactionbet een organisms and their environment.

+he ecosystem is composed of t o entities, the entirety of life (called the biocoenosis ) and the medium that life exists in(the biotope ). Hithin the ecosystem, species are connected and dependent upon one another in the food chain , andexchange energy and matter bet een themselves and ith their environment.

+he concept of an ecosystem can apply to units of variable size, such as a pond , a field, or a piece of dead ood. 3 unitof smaller size is called a microecosystem . For example, an ecosystem can be a stone and all the life under it. 3mesoecosystem could be a forest , and a macroecosystem a hole ecoregion , ith its atershed .

+he main 'uestions hen studying an ecosystem are: 9o could the colonization of a barren area be carried outI Hhat are the ecosystems dynamics and changes 9o does an ecosystem interact at local, regional and global scale s the current state stableI Hhat is the value of an ecosystemI 9o does the interaction of ecological systems provide benefit to humans,

especially in the provision of healthy aterI

$cosystems are often classified by reference to the biotopes concerned. +he follo ing ecosystems may be defined: 3s continental ecosystems (or terrestrial), such as forest ecosystems, meado ecosystems (meado s, steppes,

savannas), or agro-ecosystem s (agricultural systems). 3s ecosystems of inland aters, such as lentic ecosystems (la%es, ponds) or lotic ecosystems (rivers) 3s oceanic ecosystems (seas, oceans).

3nother classification can be done by reference to its communities (for example a human ecosystem ).

"ynamics and stability

Main articles: biogeochemistry , 9omeostasis , "opulation dynamics

Ecological factors hich can affect dynamic change in a population or species in a given ecology or environment areusually divided into t o groups: abiotic and biotic.

Abiotic factors are geological, geographical, hydrological and climatological parameters. 3 biotope is anenvironmentally uniform region characterized by a particular set of abiotic ecological factors. &pecific abiotic factorsinclude:

Hater , hich is at the same time an essential element to life and a milieu 3ir , hich provides oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide to living species and allo s the dissemination of pollen

and spores
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&oil , at the same time source of nutriment and physical support

o &oil p9 , salinity, nitrogen and phosphorus content, ability to retain ater, and density are all influentialo +emperature , hich should not exceed certain extremes, even if tolerance to heat is significant for some specieso Dight , hich provides energy to the ecosystem through photosynthesis o *atural disasters can also be considered abiotic

Biocenose , or community, is a group of populations of plants, animals, micro-organisms. $ach population is the resultof procreations bet een individuals of same species and cohabitation in a given place and for a given time. Hhen apopulation consists of an insufficient number of individuals, that population is threatened ith extinction! the extinctionof a species can approach hen all biocenoses composed of individuals of the species are in decline. n smallpopulations, consanguinity (inbreeding) can result in reduced genetic diversity that can further ea%en the biocenose.

Biotic ecological factors also influence biocenose viability! these factors are considered as either intraspecific andinterspecific relations.

%ntraspecific relations are those hich are established bet een individuals of the same species, forming apopulation. +hey are relations of co-operation or competition , ith division of the territory, and sometimesorganization in hierarchical societies.

%nterspecific relations interactions bet een different species are numerous, and usually describedaccording to their beneficial, detrimental or neutral effect (for example, mutualism (relation JJ) or competition (relation --)). +he most significant relation is the relation of predation (to eat or to be eaten), hich leads to theessential concepts in ecology of food chains (for example, the grass is consumed by the herbivore, itselfconsumed by a carnivore, itself consumed by a carnivore of larger size). 3 high predator to prey ratio can have anegative influence on both the predator and prey biocenoses in that lo availability of food and high death rateprior to sexual maturity can decrease (or prevent the increase of) populations of each, respectively. &electivehunting of species by humans hich leads to population decline is one example of a high predator to prey ratioin action. @ther interspecific relations include parasitism , infectious disease and competition for limitingresources, hich can occur hen t o species share the same ecological niche .

+he existing interactions bet een the various living beings go along ith a permanent mixing of mineral and organicsubstances, absorbed by organisms for their gro th, their maintenance and their reproduction, to be finally re ected asaste. +hese permanent recyclings of the elements (in particular carbon , oxygen and nitrogen ) as ell as the ater arecalled biogeochemical cycles . +hey guarantee a durable stability of the biosphere (at least hen unchec%ed humaninfluence and extreme eather or geological phenomena are left aside). +his self-regulation, supported by negativefeedbac% controls, ensures the perenniality of the ecosystems. t is sho n by the very stable concentrations of mostelements of each compartment. +his is referred to as homeostasis . +he ecosystem also tends to evolve to a state ofideal balance, reached after a succession of events, the climax (for example a pond can become a peat bog).

!patial relationships and subdivisions of land

Main articles: Biome , ecozone

$cosystems are not isolated from each other, but are interrelated. For example, ater may circulate bet eenecosystems by the means of a river or ocean current . Hater itself, as a li'uid medium, even defines ecosystems. &omespecies, such as salmon or fresh ater eels move bet een marine systems and fresh- ater systems. +heserelationships bet een the ecosystems lead to the concept of a biome .

3 biome is a homogeneous ecological formation that exists over a vast region, such as tundra or steppes . +hebiosphere comprises all of the $arth=s biomes -- the entirety of places here life is possible -- from the highestmountains to the depths of the oceans.

Biomes correspond rather ell to subdivisions distributed along the latitudes, from the e'uator to ards the pole s, ithdifferences based on to the physical environment (for example, oceans or mountain ranges) and to the climate . +heirvariation is generally related to the distribution of species according to their ability to tolerate temperature and ordryness. For example, one may find photosynthetic algae only in the photic part of the ocean ( here light penetrates),hile conifers are mostly found in mountains.

+hough this is a simplification of more complicated scheme, latitude and altitude approximate a good representation ofthe distribution of biodiversity ithin the biosphere. ery generally, the richness of biodiversity (as ell for animal than
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(eology (from ;ree% LM- (ge-, the earth ) and NOLOP ( logos , ord , reason )) is the science and study of the $arth,its composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape it. t is one of the $arth sciences.;eologists have helped establish the age of the $arth at about C. #abitat (from the Datin for it inhabits ) is the place here a particular species lives and gro s. t is essentially theenvironment at least the physical environment that surrounds (influences and is utilized by) a species population.He use species population instead of organism

Biology is the study, or science, of life. t is concerned ith the characteristics and behaviors of organisms, hospecies and individuals come into existence, and the interactions they have ith each other and ith the environment.Biology encompasses a broad spectrum of academic fields that are often vie ed as independent disciplines. 9o ever,together they address the phenomenon of life over a ide range of scales.

n biology and ecology, an organism (in ;ree% organon Q instrument) is a complex adaptive system of organs thatinfluence each other in such a ay that they function as a more or less stable hole and have properties of life.

+he origin of life and the relationships bet een its ma or lineages are controversial.

3 nucleic acid is a complex, high-molecular- eight biochemical macromolecule composed of nucleotide chains that

convey genetic information. +he most common nucleic acids are deo yribonucleic acid (G*3) and ribonucleic acid (4*3). *ucleic acids are found in all living cells and viruses.

Biochemistry the chemistry of life, a bridge bet een biology and chemistry that studies ho complex chemicalreactions give rise to life. t is a hybrid branch of chemistry hich specialises in the chemical processes in livingorganisms. +his article only discusses terrestrial biochemistry (carbon- and ater-based), as all the life forms e %noare on $arth.

Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level. +he field overlaps ith other areas of biology andchemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry. 7olecular biology chiefly concerns itself ith understanding theinteractions bet een the various systems of a cell, including the interrelationship of G*3, 4*3 and protein synthesisand learning ho these interactions are regulated.

cell is the structural and functional unit of all living organisms, and are sometimes called the building bloc%s of life.&ome organisms, such as bacteria, are unicellular, consisting of a single cell. @ther organisms, such as humans, aremulticellular, (humans have an estimated /EE,EEE billion or /E /C cells).

(or other meanings) see *otany +disambiguation,

Botany is the scientific study of plant life. 3s a branch of biology, it is also sometimes referred to as plant science)s* orplant biology . Botany covers a ide range of scientific disciplines that study the gro th, reproduction, metabolism,development, diseases, and evolution of plants. +oology (;ree% zoon Q animal and logos Q ord) is the biological discipline hich involves the study of animals.

#istory of ,oology

Main articles: 9istory of zoology (before Gar in), 9istory of zoology (since Gar in)

Branches of biology relevant to ,oology

population is the collection of people or organisms of a particular species living in a given geographic area.

"opulation is studied in a ide variety of ays and disciplines. n population dynamics, size, age and sex structure,mortality, reproductive behaviour, and gro th of a population are studied. n ecology, an ecosystem is a naturally occurring assemblage of organisms (plant, animal and other living organismsalso referred to as a biotic community or biocoenosis ) living together ith their environment (or biotope ), functioningas a loose unit.


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+he term ecosystem first appeared in a /012 publication by the British ecologist 3rthur +ansley (+ansley, /012).

biosphere is that part of a planet=s outer shell including air, land, surface roc%s and ater ithin hich life occurs,and hich biotic processes in turn alter or transform. From the broadest geophysiological point of vie , the biosphere isthe global ecological system integrating

+he natural environment comprises all living and non-living things that occur naturally on $arth. n its purest sense, itis thus an environment that is not the result of human activity or intervention. +he natural environment may becontrasted to the built environment.

For some, there

(eology (from ;ree% LM- (ge-, the earth ) and NOLOP ( logos , ord , reason )) is the science and study of the $arth,its composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape it. t is one of the $arth sciences.;eologists have helped establish the age of the $arth at about C. (eography is the study of the locational and spatial variation of both natural and human phenomena on $arth. +heord derives from the ;ree% ords -. or -/0% ( $arth ) and -1%2/03 ( to describe and to rite ).

Meteorology is the scientific study of the atmosphere that focuses on eather processes and forecasting.7eteorological phenomena are observable eather events hich illuminate and are explained by the science ofmeteorology. +hose events are bound by the variables that exist in $arth=s atmosphere.

Pedology (pRdS=lTgy), (from 4ussian: pedologiya , from the ;ree% pedon Q soil, earth), is the study of soils and soilformation. t is the branch of soil science that deals ith soil genesis, morphology, classification and distribution.

&oil is not onlyChemistry (derived from the 3rabic ord chemia , alchemy, here al is 3rabic for the ) is the science of matter thatdeals ith the composition, structure, and properties of substances and ith the transformations that they undergo. nthe study of matter, chemistry also investigates its interactions ith energy and itself (see physics, biology). Physics (from the ;ree%, UVWXYZP ( physikos ), natural , and U[WXP ( physis ), nature ) is the science of the natural orlddealing ith the fundamental constituents of the universe, the forces they exert on one another, and the resultsproduced by these forces. Biodiversity or biological diversity is the diversity of and in living nature. +here are a number of definitions andmeasures of biodiversity.

Etymology

*iodiversity is a neologism and a portmanteau ord, from bio and diversity. +he term biological diversity as coined by+homas Dove oy in /08E, hile the ord biodiversity itself as coined by the entomologist $.

Documents

English for Ecology(Text)