Portal:Ecology

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edit Ecology, also referred to as ecological science, is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of living organisms and how the distribution and abundance are affected by interactions between the organisms and their environment. The environment of an organism includes both physical properties, which can be described as the sum of local abiotic factors such as solar insolation, climate and geology, as well as the other organisms that share its habitat. The term Ökologie was coined in 1866 by the German biologist Ernst Haeckel; the word is derived from the Greek οικος (oikos, "household") and λόγος (logos, "study"); therefore "ecology" means the "study of the household (of nature)". Ecology is also a human science. There are many practical applications of ecology in conservation biology, wetland management, natural resource management (agriculture, forestry, fisheries), city planning (urban ecology), community health, economics, basic and applied science and human social interaction (human ecology) (Pictured left: Unique plants in the Ruwenzori Mountains, SW Uganda, Bujuku Valley, at about 12,139 feet (3,700 metre) elevation) Read more... Pictured left: The Indiana Dunes on Lake Michigan, which ecologist Henry Chandler Cowles referred to in his development of his theories of ecological succession. In the History of ecology, ecology is generally spoken of as a new science, having only become prominent in the second half of the 20th century. More precisely, there is agreement that ecology emerged as a distinct discipline at the turn of the 20th century, and that it gained public prominence in the 1960s, due to widespread concern for the state of the environment. Nonetheless, ecological thinking at some level has been around for a long time, and the principles of ecology have developed gradually, closely intertwined with the development of other biological disciplines. Thus, one of the first ecologists may have been Aristotle or perhaps his student, Theophrastus, both of whom had interest in many species of animals. Theophrastus described interrelationships between animals and between animals and their environment as early as the 4th century BC. While Charles Darwin focused exclusively on competition as a selective force, Eugen Warming devised a new discipline that took abiotic factors, that is drought, fire, salt, cold etc., as seriously as biotic factors in the assembly of biotic communities. Biogeography before Warming was largely of descriptive nature – faunistic or floristic. Warming’s aim was, through the study of organism (plant) morphology and anatomy, i.e. adaptation, to explain why a species occurred under a certain set of environmental conditions. Moreover, the goal of the new discipline was to explain why species occupying similar habitats, experiencing similar hazards, would solve problems in similar ways, despite often being of widely different phylogenetic descent. Based on his personal observations in Brazilian cerrado, in Denmark, Norwegian Finnmark and Greenland, Warming gave the first university course in ecological plant geography. Based on his lectures, he wrote the book ‘Plantesamfund’, which was immediate translated to German, Polish and Russian, later to English as ‘Oecology of Plants’. Through its German edition, the book had immense effect on British and North American scientist like Arthur Tansley, Henry Chandler Cowles and Frederic Clements. Wasp mimicry - A and B show real wasps; the rest are mimics: three hoverflies and one beetle. Mimicry is part of the evolutionary process of adaptation. Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist and philosopher. He promoted Charles Darwin's work in Germany and developed the theory that the organism's biological development, or ontogeny, parallels its species' evolutionary development, or phylogeny. The published artwork of Haeckel includes over 100 detailed, multi-color illustrations of animals and sea creatures (see: Kunstformen der Natur, "Art Forms of Nature"). As a philosopher, Ernst Haeckel wrote Die Welträtsel (1895–1899, in English, The Riddle of the Universe, 1901), the genesis for the term "world riddle" (Welträtsel); and Freedom in Science and Teaching to support the teaching of evolution. From the Wikinews Environment portal May 1: 100 tons of ivory burned in Africa; estimated at $250 million on black market March 4: Gunmen murder Honduran indigenous leader Berta Cáceres November 4: Volkswagen emissions scandal may affect thousands more cars September 24: Volkswagen CEO resigns after emissions scandal September 22: Volkswagen engulfed by diesel emissions scandal September 3: Study estimates Earth has over three trillion trees April 24: Power outage at Fukushima poses radioactive risk February 14: University of Utah study finds suicide may be linked to air pollution January 31: Scottish gamekeeper jailed for bird crime in national first January 1: United Nations analyzes oil spill in Sundarbans, Bangladesh Additional News Highlights November 5, 2009: "New ocean forming in African desert." “ I'd put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don't have to wait 'til oil and coal run out before we tackle that. ” —Thomas Edison, (1847–1931) Ibis, subtitled the International Journal of Avian Science, is the peer-reviewedscientific journalof the British Ornithologists' Union. Topics covered include ecology, conservation, behaviour, palaeontology, and taxonomyof birds. It's available for free on the internet for institutions in the developing world through the OARE scheme (Online Access to Research in the Environment). WikiProject Ecology WikiProject Environment WikiProject Ecoregions WikiProject Extinction WikiProject Biology WikiProject Protected areas WikiProject Forestry WikiProject Soil WikiProject Agriculture WikiProject Science Template:/box-footer Template:/box-header This list is transcluded from the tasks list page, to edit, click here Here are some tasks awaiting attention: Article requests : Create any of the missing articles listed on the WikiProject Ecology page, Access and Benefit Sharing Agreements, Alkalai bees (Pollinator decline), Ecological unit (Ecosystem), Ecosystem function, Nutrient flow (Synecology), Seed crop (Pollinator decline) Cleanup : Ecological literacy, Wind power in the United Kingdom Expand : Articles listed in Ecology stubs, Alluvial river, Bedrock river, Evolutionary ecology, Jungle, Renewable resource 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.  – When a task is completed, please remove it from the list. Biology Earth sciences Environment Evolutionary biology Trees Plants Fungi Forestry Water Weather Volcanoes Agriculture and Agronomy Fishing Sustainable development Global warming Biotechnology Science Chemistry Wetlands The following Wikimedia sister projects provide more on this subject: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Ecology The Encyclopedia of Earth – Wilderness: Biology & Ecology The Nature Education Knowledge Project – Ecology Ecology Dictionary – Explanation of ecological terms Ecology Journals – List of ecological scientific journals What are portals? List of portals Featured portals ja:Portal:環境