| Term | Definition |
|---|
| ecology | literally means home |
| abiotic | non living components |
| biotic | living components |
| organismal ecology | subdivisions include physiological ecology, evolutionary ecology and behavioral ecology |
| population | group of individuals of the same species living in an area |
| community | assemblage of populations |
| aphotic zone | The part of the ocean beneath the photic zone, where light does not penetrate sufficiently for photosynthesis to occur. |
| benthic zone | The bottom surface of an aquatic environment. |
| benthos | The communites of organisms living in the benthic zone of an aquatic biome. |
| biome | Any of the world's major ecosystems, classified according to the predominant vegetation and characterized by adaptations of organisms to that particular environment. |
| biosphere | The entire portion of Earth inhabited by life; the sum of all the planet's ecosystems. |
| canopy | The uppermost layer of vegetation in a terrestrial biome. |
| chaparral | A scrubland biome of dense, spiny evergreen shrubs found at midlatitudes along coasts where cold ocean currents circulate offshore; characterized by mild, rainy winters and long, hot, dry summers. |
| ecotone | The transition from one type of habitat or ecosystem to another, such as the transition from a forest to a grassland. |
| estuary | The area where a freshwater stream or river merges with the ocean. |
| eutrophic lake | A highly productive lake, having a high rate of biological productivity supported by a high rate of nutrient cycling. |
| intertidal zone | The shallow zone of the ocean where land meets water. |
| limnetic zone | In a lake, the well-lit, open surface waters farther from shore. |
| littoral zone | In a lake, the shallow, well-lit waters close to shore. |
| neritic zone | The shallow region of the ocean overlying the continental shelf. |
| oceanic pelagic biome | Most of the ocean's waters far from shore, constantly mixed by ocean currents. |
| oceanic zone | The region of water lying over deep areas beyond the continental shelf. |
| oligotrophic lake | A nutrient-poor, clear, deep lake with minimum phytoplankton. |
| pelagic zone | The area of the ocean past the continental shelf, with areas of open water often reaching to very great depths. |
| permafrost | A permanently frozen stratum below the arctic tundra. |
| photic zone | The narrow top slice of the ocean, where light permeates sufficiently for photosynthesis to occur. |
| savanna | A tropical grassland biome with scattered individual trees, large herbivores, and three distinct seasons based primarily on rainfall, maintained by occasional fires and drought. |
| temperate broadleaf forest | A biome located throughout midlatitude regions where there is sufficient moisture to support the growth of large, broadleaf deciduous trees. |
| thermocline | A narrow stratum of rapid temperature change in the ocean and in many temperate-zone lakes. |
| tundra | A biome at the extreme limits of plant growth. At the northernmost limits, it is called arctic tundra, and at high altitudes, where plant forms are limited to low shrubby or matlike vegetation, it is called alpine tundra. |
| wetland | An ecosystem intermediate between an aquatic one and a terrestrial one. Wetland soil is saturated with water permanently or periodically. |
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