Glossary of Terms Adaptation - Any physical or behavioral characteristic that helps an animal to survive in its environment. (Example - A Physical adaptation of a Polar Bear is that it has white fur that helps it to camouflage itself in the snowy regions of the Arctic. A behavioral adaptation is that it covers its black nose with its white paws when it is trying to hide.) Biodiversity - All of the different types of organisms that live in an area. Biogeography - The study of life on Earth. Biome - Also called Major Life Zone, the largest geographic biotic (life) unit, a major community of plants and animals with similar life forms and environmental conditions. It includes various communities and developmental stages of communities and is named for the dominant type of vegetation, such as grassland or coniferous forest.
Climate - Conditions of the atmosphere at a particular location over a long period of time; it is the long-term summation of the atmospheric elements (and their variations) that, over short time periods, constitute weather. These elements are solar radiation, temperature, humidity, precipitation (type, frequency, and amount), atmospheric pressure, and wind (speed and direction).
Environment - The complex of physical, chemical, and biotic (living) factors that act upon an organism or an ecological community and ultimately determine its form and survival.
Habitat - The place or environment where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives and grows. In this place it can find everything it needs to live, grow, and reproduce.
Niche - a. A habitat supplying the factors necessary for the existence of an organism or species. b. The ecological role of an organism in a community especially in regard to food consumption To find the definitions of other words try these web-sites. http://dictionary.reference.com/ http://www.yourdictionary.com/ - This site has dictionaries from many languages.
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