Ecology

Ecology

Contributors in Ecology

Ecology

A tasteless white protein distilled from milk and used in dessert toppings, coffee whiteners, adhesives and binders, paint, and plastics. Sensitivity to it plays a role in milk allergies, Asperger's ...

Speciesism

Biology; Ecology

Term coined in 1970 by British psychologist Richard Ryder to denote a form of prejudice against nonhuman species. An example would be the belief that animals have fewer rights than humans because of ...

Residence time

Biology; Ecology

The amount of water held in a given body divided by the amount that flows into and out of it. (The oceans' residence time is roughly 40,000 years. By contrast, the average turnover time of a stream ...

Cline

Biology; Ecology

A gradient of variations in a species that stretches across a geographical location. Example: different types of eucalyptus trees running across a series of slopes.

Riparian

Biology; Ecology

Adjacent to a river or stream. Riparian zones exchange organic matter between wet and dry habitats and regulate erosion, sedimentation, temperature, and nutrients.

Chordates

Biology; Ecology

Animals with a notochord--a long, cartilaginous support column running most of the body's length--located between the stomach and a fluid-filled dorsal nerve cord.

Permeability

Biology; Ecology

How easily soils and rocks transport water horizontally and vertically. Shale is porous and therefore permeable, as is sand and gravel; granite and clay are not.