These terms form a framework for studying, preventing, and mitigating extinction risks. They are foundational in the fields of conservation biology, ecology, environmental science, and policy.
A
- Adaptation: The process by which organisms adjust to new environments or to changes in their current environment.
- Adaptive Radiation: The diversification of a group of organisms into forms filling different ecological niches.
- Anthropocene: Proposed epoch dating from significant human impact on Earth’s geology and ecosystems, including climate change and biodiversity loss.
- Anthropogenic: Resulting from human activity, often used in the context of climate change and environmental impact.
- Archaeopaleontology: The study of ancient fossils and their environment, focusing on understanding past ecosystems and extinctions.
B
- Background Extinction Rate: The standard rate of extinction in Earth’s biological and geological history before humans became a primary contributor.
- Biodiversity Hotspot: A region with a high level of endemic species that is experiencing a rapid loss of habitat.
- Bioindicator Species: Species used to monitor the health of an environment or ecosystem.
- Biome Shift: A significant change in the geographic location or structure of an ecosystem due to climate change.
- Biotic Crisis: A sudden, widespread decrease in biodiversity due to environmental factors or mass extinction events.
C
- Catastrophic Event: A sudden, large-scale occurrence that drastically impacts ecosystems, such as volcanic eruptions or asteroid impacts.
- Climate Change: Long-term changes in temperature and weather patterns, often linked to human activities.
- Coextinction: The extinction of one species leading to the extinction of another, often because of their interdependent relationships.
- Colonization: The process of species moving into new habitats, which can influence extinction dynamics.
- Conservation Biology: The science of protecting and managing biodiversity.
D
- De-extinction: The process of reviving extinct species through genetic engineering or selective breeding.
- Defaunation: The loss or decline of animals from ecological communities.
- Dispersal Mechanism: The means by which species spread to new areas, potentially aiding survival or migration.
- Disturbance Event: Any temporary change in environmental conditions that causes a pronounced change in an ecosystem.
- Doomsday Argument: A philosophical argument that suggests there is a probability estimate of human extinction based on current patterns.
E
- Ecological Collapse: The breakdown of a local ecosystem due to environmental stressors, such as loss of key species.
- Ecological Footprint: A measure of the demand on Earth’s ecosystems and natural resources.
- Ecological Niche: The role and position a species has within its environment.
- Ecotoxicology: The study of the effects of toxic chemicals on biological organisms and their environments.
- Endangered Species: Species at serious risk of extinction due to declining populations or habitat loss.
- End-Permian Extinction: The largest mass extinction in Earth’s history, which occurred 252 million years ago.
- Endangered Species Act (ESA): A U.S. law aimed at protecting species at risk of extinction.
F
- Fossil Record: The history of life as documented by fossils, which provide information about past ecosystems and extinctions.
- Functional Extinction: When a species no longer plays a significant ecological role or has too few individuals to sustain its population.
- Functional Diversity: The range of different functions or roles species within an ecosystem perform.
G
- Gene Flow: The transfer of genetic variation from one population to another, which can help species adapt to changing conditions.
- Genetic Bottleneck: A reduction in the genetic diversity of a population due to a major event.
- Geological Epoch: A division of geological time associated with significant changes in Earth’s history, like the Holocene.
- Greenhouse Gas: Gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect by trapping heat in Earth’s atmosphere, such as CO₂.
H
- Habitat Fragmentation: The process by which large, continuous habitats are broken up, often leading to reduced biodiversity.
- Habitat Loss: The destruction or alteration of the natural environment, posing risks to species’ survival.
- Holocene Extinction: The current period of mass extinction primarily due to human activity.
- Human-Wildlife Conflict: Interaction between humans and wildlife that negatively impacts one or both.
I
- Inbreeding Depression: Reduced biological fitness due to mating between closely related individuals, increasing risk of extinction.
- Invasive Species: Non-native species that spread and cause harm to native ecosystems.
- Island Biogeography: The study of species composition on islands, often leading to extinction insights due to isolated populations.
K
- Keystone Species: A species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend; its removal can lead to ecosystem collapse.
- K-T Boundary: The geological marker between the Cretaceous and Paleogene periods, associated with the mass extinction that killed the dinosaurs.
L
- Land Use Change: Alteration of land by humans for agriculture or urban development, a leading cause of habitat loss.
- Latent Extinction Risk: The potential for a species to become extinct in the future, even if it currently appears stable.
- Local Extinction: When a species disappears from a specific area but exists elsewhere.
M
- Mass Extinction: A rapid, widespread reduction in biodiversity, typically marked by the extinction of a large percentage of species.
- Megafauna Extinction: The extinction of large animals, often during the Pleistocene, influenced by both human activity and climate change.
- Minimum Viable Population: The smallest population size needed to prevent a species from going extinct.
- Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA): Genetic material in mitochondria that can help trace evolutionary history and population declines.
- Morphological Adaptation: Physical changes that enable an organism to survive in its environment.
N
- Natural Selection: The process by which organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and reproduce.
- Near Threatened: A conservation status for species that may be at risk of extinction in the near future.
- Niche Partitioning: The process by which competing species use the environment differently to coexist.
O
- Overexploitation: Excessive use of species or resources, leading to population declines or ecosystem damage.
- Overpopulation: A situation in which a species’ population exceeds the capacity of its environment.
P
- Paleoclimate: The climate conditions in the geological past, reconstructed through the study of ice cores, tree rings, etc.
- Paleoecology: The study of ecosystems from the past to understand how they functioned and why they changed.
- Permian-Triassic Extinction: A mass extinction event 252 million years ago, known as the “Great Dying.”
- Phenological Mismatch: Timing discrepancies between species that interact, often caused by climate change.
- Phytoplankton Decline: Reduction in marine phytoplankton, impacting ocean ecosystems and food chains.
- Population Decline: A reduction in a species’ population size, often signaling increased risk of extinction.
- Predator-Prey Imbalance: Disruption in the natural balance between predator and prey, often due to human interference.
- Protected Area Network: Areas designated for conservation to protect ecosystems and prevent extinction.
- Punctuated Equilibrium: The theory that species evolve rapidly during short periods of ecological change.
R
- Radiative Forcing: The effect of greenhouse gases on Earth’s climate, contributing to global warming and biodiversity stress.
- Recolonization: The process of a species returning to an area from which it was previously extirpated.
- Red List: The IUCN’s list that categorizes species by their extinction risk.
- Resilience: The ability of an ecosystem to withstand or recover from disturbances.
- Rising Sea Levels: The increase in global sea levels due to melting ice caps, impacting coastal habitats and species.
S
- Sixth Mass Extinction: The ongoing mass extinction event caused by human activities.
- Species Richness: The number of different species in an ecosystem, used as a measure of biodiversity.
- Speciation: The formation of new species as a result of evolution.
- Stratigraphy: The study of rock layers to understand Earth’s history, including extinction events.
- Survivorship Bias: Focusing on species that survive crises, while underestimating those that didn’t.
T
- Threshold Effect: A point at which a relatively small change or disturbance in external conditions causes a rapid change in an ecosystem.
- Top-Down Regulation: Control of ecosystem structure by top predators; their removal can disrupt ecosystem balance.
- Trophic Cascade: Ecological phenomena triggered by the addition or removal of top predators.
U
- Umbrella Species: Species whose protection indirectly protects many other species within its habitat.
- Unsustainable Development: Economic development that depletes resources, harming ecosystems and increasing extinction risk.
V
- Vulnerable Species: A species classified by the IUCN as facing a high risk of extinction in the wild.
W
- Wildlife Corridor: A natural passage that connects fragmented habitats, allowing species to migrate safely.
Z
- Zoogeography: The study of the distribution of animals, important for understanding patterns of biodiversity and extinction.
Climate? Ecology is Science
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- Global Reparative Justice: Addressing colonialism, and systemic inequities on a planetary scale
- 2020 Vision: Climate Justice and Reparative Equity for Historical and Ecological Injustice
- References, Reading, and Research Notes for McGill’s Climate Justice as a Form of Reparative Equity
- Evolving Governance: Planetary Leadership Beyond Elections and Toward Human Resilience
- John Nash’s Unparalleled Legacy in the Changing Climate of Societal Transformation
- Extinction: A Basic Working Vocabulary for Studying, Preventing, and Mitigating Extinction Risks
- Cheers to resilience…
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