Key Terms
Abiotic - Non living elements of an ecosystem. Eg. Sunlight or wind.
Abundance -A large quantity of something.
Adaptation - A change in structure or function of an organism to improve chance of survival in an environment.
Agriculture - The production of crops, livestock and poultry.
Arboreal - Living in trees.
Biodiversity - The existence of variety of plant and animal species in a natural environment
Biotic - A living element in an ecosystem. Eg. Animal or plant.
Colonisation - To settle in an area and establish a presence.
Conservation - The restoration and preservation of natural resources in order to prevent depletion
Crop - The produce from the ground, while growing or when gathered
Dimension - A property of space in a given direction
Disperse - To separate
Distribution - The placement, arrangement, location and disposition of something
Ecology - The set of relationships and interactions existing between organisms and their environment, including other organisms.
Ecosystem - a system or group of elements formed by the interaction of a community of organisms within their environment.
Environment - surrounding things, conditions or influences.
Fauna - The animals of a given region or period.
Flora - The plants of a given region or period.
Fragmentation - The disintegration or breakdown of areas.
Habitat - The natural environment of an organism.
Landscape - A section or expanse of land, usually extensive.
Linear Strip - A straight section.
Livestock - Animals kept or raised on a farm or ranch.
Matrix - The space between patches of native habitat.
Metapopulation - A population that is separated by space but consists of the same species
Native - Being of the place or environment in which something originated, grew or produced.
Natural Selection - The process by which forms of life have traits that better enable them to adapt to environmental pressures, enabling them to pass on favorable traits to their offspring while others without favourable traits cease to exist.
Patches - Small sections of habitat
Pitfall Trap - A trap for small animals typically utilised by ecologists for studies and pest control.
Population - The total number of beings in a specified area.
Remnant - A remaining, usually small piece of an element or area.
Resources - A source of supply, aid or support, especially one that can be readily drawn upon when needed.
Species - A class of individuals with common characteristics or qualities of a distinct sort.
Species Richness - The number of different species represented in an ecological community, landscape or region and does not consider their abundance.
Urban - Of, relating to, or denoting a city or town.
Urbanisation - Taking on the characteristics of a city or town.
Vegetation - All of the plant life of a place.
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