Portal:Ecology

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Ecology

Ecology (from Ancient Greek οἶκος (oîkos) 'house', and -λογία (-logía) 'study of') is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere levels. Ecology overlaps with the closely related sciences of biogeography, evolutionary biology, genetics, ethology, and natural history. Ecology is a branch of biology, and is the study of abundance, biomass, and distribution of organisms in the context of the environment. It encompasses life processes, interactions, and adaptations; movement of materials and energy through living communities; successional development of ecosystems; cooperation, competition, and predation within and between species; and patterns of biodiversity and its effect on ecosystem processes. Ecology has practical applications in conservation biology, wetland management, natural resource management (agroecology, agriculture, forestry, agroforestry, fisheries, mining, tourism), urban planning (urban ecology), community health, economics, basic and applied science, and human social interaction (human ecology). The word ecology (German: Ökologie) was coined in 1866 by the German scientist Ernst Haeckel. The science of ecology as we know it today began with a group of American botanists in the 1890s. Evolutionary concepts relating to adaptation and natural selection are cornerstones of modern ecological theory. Ecosystems are dynamically interacting systems of organisms, the communities they make up, and the non-living (abiotic) components of their environment. Ecosystem processes, such as primary production, nutrient cycling, and niche construction, regulate the flux of energy and matter through an environment. Ecosystems have biophysical feedback mechanisms that moderate processes acting on living (biotic) and abiotic components of the planet. Ecosystems sustain life-supporting functions and provide ecosystem services like biomass production (food, fuel, fiber, and medicine), the regulation of climate, global biogeochemical cycles, water filtration, soil formation, erosion control, flood protection, and many other natural features of scientific, historical, economic, or intrinsic value. (Full article...) Selected article - Disturbance of a fire can clearly be seen by comparing the unburnt (left) and burnt (right) sides of the mountain range in South Africa. The veld ecosystem relies on periodic fire disturbances like these to rejuvenate itself. In ecology, a disturbance is a temporary change in environmental conditions that causes a pronounced change in an ecosystem. Disturbances often act quickly and with great effect, to alter the physical structure or arrangement of biotic and abiotic elements. A disturbance can also occur over a long period of time and can impact the biodiversity within an ecosystem. Major ecological disturbances may include fires, flooding, storms, insect outbreaks and trampling. Earthquakes, various types of volcanic eruptions, tsunami, firestorms, impact events, climate change, and the devastating effects of human impact on the environment (anthropogenic disturbances) such as clearcutting, forest clearing and the introduction of invasive species can be considered major disturbances. (Full article...) List of selected articles Ecosystem History of ecology Ecological economics River ecosystem Human ecology Forest ecology Wetland Natural environment Butanol fuel Old-growth forest Bioplastic Atmosphere of Earth Conservation biology Biofuel Aquatic ecosystem Landscape ecology Cleaner fish Biome Hydrology Biosphere Life Mycology Evolution Lotic ecosystem Coral reef Fire ecology Pollination Species reintroduction Theoretical ecology Spatial ecology Ecological fitting Ecology of California Biodiversity of Albania Storage effect Vacant niche Desert ecology Ecological facilitation Food web Plant ecology Intertidal ecology Nitrogen cycle Restoration ecology Ecological art Ecological resilience Ecology of the North Cascades Ecology of the Rocky Mountains Altitudinal zonation Ecology of the San Francisco Estuary Environmental issues with coral reefs Acclimatisation society Island restoration Intraspecific competition Interspecific competition Taylor's law World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions Blue carbon Ciénega Metabolic theory of ecology Ecosystem-based management The Green Planet (TV series) Selected image - Biodiversity Credit: User: Lamiot Plant biodiversity—"Green wall", in Lille, northern France General images The following are images from various ecology-related articles on Wikipedia. A freshwater lake in Gran Canaria, an island of the Canary Islands. Clear boundaries make lakes convenient to study using an ecosystem approach. (from Ecosystem) Global oceanic and terrestrial phototroph abundance, from September 1997 to August 2000. As an estimate of autotroph biomass, it is only a rough indicator of primary production potential and not an actual estimate of it. (from Ecosystem) An Antarctic rock split apart to show endolithic lifeforms showing as a green layer a few millimeters thick (from Habitat) Dense mass of white crabs at a hydrothermal vent, with stalked barnacles on right (from Habitat) Ibex in an alpine habitat (from Habitat) Flora of Baja California desert, Cataviña region, Mexico (from Ecosystem) The leaves of an Alnus nepalensis tree provide a microhabitat for species like the leaf beetle Aulacophora indica. (from Habitat) Wetland habitat types in Borneo (from Habitat) The High Peaks Wilderness Area in the 6,000,000-acre (2,400,000 ha) Adirondack Park is an example of a diverse ecosystem. (from Ecosystem) This coral reef in the Phoenix Islands Protected Area provides habitat for numerous marine species. (from Habitat) Sequence of a decomposing pig carcass over time (from Ecosystem) Table visualising size-symmetric competition, using fish as consumers and crabs as resources. (from Community (ecology)) Desert scene in Egypt (from Habitat) A red-chested cuckoo chick being feed by a significantly smaller Cape robin-chat adult (from Community (ecology)) Rainforest ecosystems are rich in biodiversity. This is the Gambia River in Senegal's Niokolo-Koba National Park. (from Ecosystem) Few creatures make the ice shelves of Antarctica their habitat, but water beneath the ice can provide habitat for multiple species. Animals such as penguins have adapted to live in very cold conditions. (from Habitat) Spiny forest at Ifaty, Madagascar, featuring various Adansonia (baobab) species, Alluaudia procera (Madagascar ocotillo) and other vegetation (from Ecosystem) A simple trophic cascade diagram. On the right shows when wolves are absent, showing an increase in elks and reduction in vegetation growth. The left one shows when wolves are present and controlling the elk population. (from Community (ecology)) Twenty-five years after the devastating eruption at Mount St. Helens, United States, pioneer species have moved in. (from Habitat) Rich rainforest habitat in Dominica (from Habitat) A bear with a salmon. Interspecific interactions such as predation are a key aspect of community ecology. (from Community (ecology)) A generalised graph of a predator-prey population density cycle (from Community (ecology)) Biological nitrogen cycling (from Ecosystem) Loch Lomond in Scotland forms a relatively isolated ecosystem. The fish community of this lake has remained stable over a long period until a number of introductions in the 1970s restructured its food web. (from Ecosystem) a) A trophic pyramid showing the different trophic levels in a community. b) A food web of the same community (from Community (ecology)) Related WikiProjects WikiProject Ecology WikiProject Environment WikiProject Ecoregions WikiProject Extinction WikiProject Biology WikiProject Protected areas WikiProject Forestry WikiProject Soil WikiProject Agriculture WikiProject Science Things you can do Here are some tasks awaiting attention: Article requests : Create any of the missing articles listed on the WikiProject Ecology page, Alkali bee (Pollinator decline), Ecosystem function (presently a redirect), Nutrient flow (Synecology), Seed crop (Pollinator decline) Verify : Agroecosystem, Biologist, Botany, Ecological pyramid, Ecological selection, Ecological succession, Ecotone, Functional ecology, Macroecology, Microbial ecology, Molecular biology, Uncontacted peoples Wikify : Add {{Portal|Ecology}} to the See also sections of ecology-related articles. Other : For additional tasks, see Wikipedia:WikiProject Ecology/to do  – When a task is completed, please remove it from the list. Recognized content - Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards. Leafy sea dragon avoids recognition by predators, with alga-like coloration, protuberances and behaviour Underwater camouflage is the set of methods of achieving crypsis—avoidance of observation—that allows otherwise visible aquatic organisms to remain unnoticed by other organisms such as predators or prey. Camouflage in large bodies of water differs markedly from camouflage on land. The environment is essentially the same on all sides. Light always falls from above, and there is generally no variable background to compare with trees and bushes. Near to the sea surface reflectivity and blue coloration are the most common form of camouflage. Below, countershading is more common, with blue coloration on the dorsal side and white on the ventral side. Below the epipelagic zone transparency is more frequent. In the aphotic zone red and black coloration are common, often in combination with bioluminescence. At the very deepest areas such as the benthic regions of the hadal zone, most animals use pale red and cream colors. (Full article...) List of recognized articles Botany Climate Sustainability Nature Automimicry Apex predator Batesian mimicry Aposematism Aggressive mimicry Countershading Albany Pine Bush Ambush predator Camouflage Flagship species Disruptive coloration Habitat Host (biology) Invasive species Keystone species Mimicry Motion camouflage Müllerian mimicry Natural selection Predation Parasitoid Parasitism Geography and ecology of the Everglades Leopold Report List of invasive species in the Everglades Selected biography - Quarterman in 2012 Elsie Quarterman (November 28, 1910 – June 9, 2014) was a prominent plant ecologist. She was a Professor Emerita at Vanderbilt University. Quarterman was born on November 28, 1910, in Valdosta, Georgia. She earned a B.A. from Georgia State Women's College (now Valdosta State University) in 1932 and earned an M.A. in botany from Duke University in 1943. She completed her PhD at Duke University in 1949 with Henry J. Oosting. During her graduate work and afterward, she also collaborated extensively with Catherine Keever. (Full article...) List of selected biographies Ernst Haeckel Charles Darwin Eugenius Warming Aziz Ab'Sáber Sergei Winogradsky Leonty Ramensky Aldo Leopold Eugene Odum Rachel Carson Howard T. Odum William Skinner Cooper Pierre Dansereau Edward Smith Deevey Jr. John Burroughs Helena Norberg-Hodge Martin Gerzabek Exequiel Ezcurra Lian Pin Koh Ann Fowler Rhoads Ramon Margalef Charles Sutherland Elton Frances James (ecologist) John Stanley Beard Liz Chicaje Aparajita Datta C. S. Holling Marie-Josée Fortin Hanna Kokko Karl Möbius Ian Stirling (biologist) Paul Sears Joan Roughgarden Christen C. Raunkiær Ed Ricketts Carl Linnaeus Lincoln Brower Did you know (auto-generated) ... that Kühkopf-Knoblochsaue is a large Naturschutzgebiet in Hesse, Germany, protecting the ecology of the floodplains where the Rhine formerly meandered? ... that King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's "cli-fi" thrash metal album addresses a mix of current ecological threats and attempts to find another planet to live on? ... that wampum artist Elizabeth James-Perry also works on ecological restoration projects, including the reintroduction of native plant life? ... that gynecologist Mary Lake Polan wrote a medical mystery novel to "demystify" the procedures behind in vitro fertilisation? ... that gynaecologist Oon Chiew Seng, who was diagnosed with dementia in 2013, was the founding chairperson of the first dementia home in Singapore? ... that ancient Roman gynecologists believed that menstrual blood could be used to drive dogs insane? Selected quote - “ Today's world is one in which the age-old risks of humankind—the drought, floods, communicable diseases—are less of a problem than ever before. They have been replaced by risks of humanity's own making—the unintended side-effects of beneficial technologies and the intended effects of the technologies of war. Society must hope that the world's ability to assess and manage risks will keep pace with its ability to create them. ” —J. Clarence Davies, Author, Political scientist Ecology news From the Wikinews Environment portal April 23: European Union to reduce carbon emissions by 55% of 1990 levels by 2030 November 27: Wikinews interviews Craig Farquharson, Liberal Democrat candidate for 2020 Groom by-election November 27: Wikinews interviews Sandra Jephcott, Sustainable Australia candidate for 2020 Groom by-election December 14: Greta Thunberg named 2019 Time Person of the Year November 23: Researchers break down deaths due to power plant pollution in the United States November 21: Slippery business: Materials scientists invent new coating for self-cleaning, water-efficient toilets October 19: Northern Arapaho Tribe welcomes buffalo herd in Wyoming, United States October 12: Scientists describe how 'upside-down rivers' of warm water break Antarctica's ice shelf October 5: Voracious fish defend coral reefs against warming, say scientists September 8: Scientists report skyrocketing phytoplankton population in aftermath of Kīlauea eruption Additional News Highlights November 5, 2009: "New ocean forming in African desert." Selected publication - Conservation Biology is a peer-reviewed academic journal of the Society for Conservation Biology, published by Wiley-Blackwell. Conservation Biology publishes articles covering the science and practice of conserving Earth's biological diversity. Coverage includes issues concerning any of the Earth's ecosystems or regions, and that apply different approaches to solving problems in this area. (Full article...) More selected publications Related portals More did you know - Related articles Associated Wikimedia The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject: Commons Free media repository Wikibooks Free textbooks and manuals Wikidata Free knowledge base Wikinews Free-content news Wikiquote Collection of quotations Wikisource Free-content library Wikiversity Free learning tools Wiktionary Dictionary and thesaurus Web resources Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Ecology The Encyclopedia of Earth – Ecology The Nature Education Knowledge Project – Ecology National Geographic – Ecology Discover Wikipedia using portals List of all portals The arts portal Biography portal Current events portal Geography portal History portal Mathematics portal Science portal Society portal Technology portal Random portal WikiProject Portals