Habitat
The overall environment, but more often specifically the physical environment during which organisms live.
Ecological Transition
This concept was developed by Bennett in 1976, which concerns the reduction during a farmer’s dependence on his land that always accompanies his incorporation into the cash economy. The economic opportunities of industry or urban life gradually provide viable social alternatives to rural life, and individual farmers can afford to be less concerned about the likelihood of long-term decline within the productivity of their land. Over-cultivation may result from this reduced ecological sensitivity in the rural population.
Ecological Explosion
Ecological events are marked by a huge increase in the number of some kind or kinds or organism. The term was defined by Elton in 1958 and was employed to point the bursting out from the control of populations that were previously held in check by other forces. Classic samples of such explosions are found within the epidemics of infectious viruses and bacteria, like influenza and plague, etc. Many organisms subject to such population outbursts are serious agricultural pests, like the desert locust (Schistoverca gregaria). The causes of the devastating plagues appear to be associated with weather, particularly to moisture, operating in and thru the method of phase transformation, during which the locusts exhibit polymorphism, changing from solitary (solitaria) forms to gregarious or swarming forms (gregaria). The causes of the many ecological explosions remain far away from clear, and it's interesting to watch that a lot of species which are rare in their normal habitat, experience such bursts of the population when spread by a man to new areas and environments.
Niche
A niche refers to the function, or occupation, of a body within a given community. It's the way an organism obtains and sustains the physical, chemical, and biological factors it must survive. a private species must satisfy several aspects in its niche. Among these are a habitat niche, an atrophic (food ) niche, and a reproductive niche. For instance, Goraiya bird occurs throughout India in habitats of pastures, meadows and marsh where they nest. Their trophic niche is weed seeds and cultivated seed crops throughout the year, adding insects to their diet during the nesting season. Some species have symbiotic relationships, an appointment that mutually benefits and sustains each organism. For instance, lichen (pronounced “liken”) is formed from algae and fungi cohabitation. The algae are that the producer and food source, and therefore the fungus provides structure and physical support. Their interdependent relationship (mutualism) allows the 2 to occupy a distinct segment during which neither could survive alone. A niche consists of:
(i) Habitat– where the species live.
(ii) Food niche – what a species eats and decomposes and what species it competes with.
(iii) Reproductive niche – how and when it reproduces.
(iv) Physical and chemical niche – temperature, moisture, and landform.
(v) Geo-ecological niche– topography, terrain, slope, and soils etc.
Ecotone
An ecotone may be a boundary transition zone between adjoining ecosystems which will vary in breadth and represent areas of tension, as similar species of plants and animals compete for resources. In other words, an ecotone is that the transition on the bottom between two plant communities. it's going to be a broad zone and reflect a gradual blending of two communities, or it's going to be approximated by a sharp boundary line. It's going to coincide with changes in physical environmental conditions or be hooked into plant interactions, especially competition, which may produce sharp community boundaries even where environmental gradients are gentle. It's also wont to denote a mosaic or inter-getting zone between two more homogeneous vegetation units. they need special significance for mobile animals through edge effects (such as because of the availability of quite one set of habitat within a brief distance). The plants and animals that occur within the ecotone are referred to as edge species. During a terrestrial ecosystem, the edge effect is critical in birds. for instance, the density of birds is bigger within the mixed habitat of the ecotone between the forest and therefore the desert.
Ecotope
The physical environment of a community (biocoenosis). It includes those aspects of the physical environment that are influenced by or are influenced by a biocoenosis. Alongside its biocoenosis, the ecotope forms an integral part of biogeoecoenosis. There are two major component parts of the ecotope: the effective atmospheric environment (climate) and therefore the soil (edaphotope).
Biostasy
A term that was applied by Erhart in 1956 to periods of soil formation, with rhexistasy pertaining to phases of denudation. In periods of biostasy, there's normal vegetation, while in phases of rhexistasy there is dying out or lack of vegetation, as a result of erosion resulting from climatic changes, tectonic displacement, etc.
Biota
The entire complement of species of organisms, plants and animals, found within a given region are referred to as biota.
Biotope
The habitat of a community, or a micro-habitat with a biocoenosis. within the first sense, the word is synonymous with ecotope, the effective physical environment of a biocenosis or community. within the second sense, it refers to a little, relatively uniform habitat within the more complex community, e.g. although a forest community occupies its own habitat, each layer of stratum within the forest could also be considered a separate biotope (see also niche).
Community
A convenient biotic subdivision within an ecosystem is referred to as a community. it's formed by interactions among the population of living animals and plants.
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