List of ecology topics

This is a list of ecology topics. It relates to the science of ecology which is the study of the interactions between various species and their natural environment.

A

*adaptive management
*aerobic metabolism
*Allee effect
*Alternative biochemistry
*anaerobic metabolism
*Applied ecology - the practice of employing ecological principles and understanding to solve real world problems (includes agroecology and conservation biology)
*atmosphere
*autecology
*autopoïesis
*autotroph

B

*bacteria
* Behavioral ecology - studies the ecological and evolutionary basis for animal behavior, focusing largely at the level of the individual
*biodegradable
*biodiversity
*Biogeochemistry - effect of biota on global chemistry, and the cycles of matter and energy that transport the Earth's chemical components in time and space
*Biogeography - the study of the geographic distributions of species
*bioinvader
*biome
*Biosphere

C

*carbon cycle
*carrying capacity
*Chemical ecology - which deals with the ecological role of biological chemicals used in a wide range of areas including defense against predators and attraction of mates
*climate
*climate change
*conservation biology
*Conservation ecology - which studies how to reduce the risk of species extinction
*community assembly theory
* Community ecology (or synecology) - studies the interactions between species within an ecological community
*competition
*competitive exclusion principle
*cooperation

D

* Decomposition
* Desert ecology

E

*ecological literacy
*ecological selection
*Ecological succession - a focus on the understanding that directs vegetation change
*ecophagy
*Ecophysiology - which studies the interaction of physiological traits with the abiotic environment
*ecopoiesis
*ecoregion
*ecosynthesis
*ecosystem
*Ecosystem ecology - which studies how flows of energy and matter interact with biotic elements of ecosystems
*ecosystem function
*ecosystem services
*Ecotoxicology - looks at the ecological role of toxic chemicals (often pollutants, but also naturally occurring compounds)
*ecozone
*environmental restoration
*eutrophication
*evaporation
*Evolutionary ecology - (or ecoevolution) the evolutionary changes in the context of the populations and communities in which the organisms exist
*exobiology
*extinction

F

*feedback
*Fire ecology - which looks at the role of fire in the environment of plants and animals and its effect on ecological communities
*food chain
*food web
*Forest ecology
*founder population
*Functional ecology - the study of the roles, or functions, that certain species (or groups thereof) play in an ecosystem

G

*Global ecology - examines ecological phenomena at the largest possible scale, addressing macroecological questions
*global ecophagy

H

*habitat
*habitat connectivity
*habitat corridors
*habitat fragmentation
*homeostasis
*human ecology
*hydrosphere
*hydrologic cycle

I

*Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis
*Invasive species

J

K

Kyoto Protocol

L

* Landscape ecology - studies the interactions between discrete elements of a landscape
*lichen
*lithosphere
*logistic curve
* Lotka–Volterra equation

M

*Macroecology - the study of large scale ecological phenomena
*Marine ecology - and aquatic ecology, where the dominant environmental milieu is water
*metabolic theory of ecology
*Microbial ecology - the ecology of micro-organisms
*micro-climate
*Microecology - the study of small scale ecological phenomena
*molecular assembler
*Molecular ecology
*molecular engineering
*mutualism

N

*natural resource
*negative feedback loop
*neutralism
*niche
*nitrogen cycle
*nutrient

O

P

*Paleoecology - seeks to understand the relationships between species in fossil assemblages
*phosphorus cycle
*pioneer species
*pollination
*pollinator decline
*political ecology
*Population ecology (or autecology) - deals with the dynamics of populations within species, and the interactions of these populations with environmental factors
*primary production
*protocooperation

Q

R

* Restoration ecology - attempts to understand the ecological basis needed to restore impaired or damaged ecosystems
*run-off

*soil
*Soil ecology - the ecology of the pedosphere
*source-sink dynamics
*speciation
*sulfur cycle
*symbiosis
*synecology
*system

T

*terrestrial ecology
*terrestrial ecoregion
*Theoretical ecology - the development of ecological theory, usually with mathematical, statistical and/or computer modeling tools
*trophic level

U

*Urban ecology - the study of ecosystems in urban areas

V

*Verhulst equation
*virology
*virus

W

*water cycle
*water vapour
*watershed
*web of life

X

Y

Z

ee also

*Biology
*Botany
*Zoology
*History of ecology