*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.
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