Outline of ecology

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The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to ecology:

Ecology – scientific study of the distribution and abundance of living organisms and how the distribution and abundance are affected by interactions between the organisms and their environment. The environment of an organism includes both physical properties, which can be described as the sum of local abiotic factors such as solar insolation, climate and geology, as well as the other organisms that share its habitat. Also called ecological science.

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Essence of ecology

Other criteria

Ecology can also be classified on the basis of:

the primary kinds of organism under study, e.g. animal ecology, plant ecology, insect ecology;
the biomes principally studied, e.g. forest ecology, grassland ecology, desert ecology, benthic ecology, marine ecology, urban ecology;
the geographic or climatic area, e.g. arctic ecology, tropical ecology;
the spatial scale under consideration, e.g. macroecology, landscape ecology;
the philosophical approach, e.g. systems ecology which adopts a holistic approach;
the methods used, e.g. molecular ecology.

Subdisciplines of ecology, and subdiscipline classification

Ecology is a broad discipline comprising many subdisciplines. The field of ecology can be subdivided according to several classification schemes:

By methodology used for investigation

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By spatial scale of ecological system under study

By level of organisation or scope

Arranged from lowest to highest level of organisation:^[1]

Template:Annotated link – the study of individual organisms of a single species in relation to their environment;
Template:Annotated link – the study of homogenous or heterogenous groups of organisms in relation to their environment;
- Template:Annotated link – the study of homogenous groups of organisms related as a single species;
- Template:Annotated link – the study of heterogenous groups of organisms of multiple associated species;
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By biological classification or taxon under study

By biome under study

By biogeographic realm or climatic area under study

By ecological aspects or phenomena under investigation

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Template:Annotated link – which deals with the ecological role of biological chemicals used in a wide range of areas including defense against predators and attraction of mates;
Template:Annotated link – which studies host-pathogen interactions, particularly those of infectious diseases, within the context of environmental factors;
Template:Annotated link – which studies the interaction of physiological traits with the abiotic environment;
Template:Annotated link – which looks at the ecological role of toxic chemicals (often pollutants, but also naturally occurring compounds);
Template:Annotated link – or ecoevolution which looks at evolutionary changes in the context of the populations and communities in which the organisms exist;
Template:Annotated link – which looks at the role of fire in the environment of plants and animals and its effect on ecological communities;
Template:Annotated link – the study of the roles, or functions, that certain species (or groups thereof) play in an ecosystem;
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Template:Annotated link – the ecology of the pedosphere –
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Template:Annotated link – the study of the relationship between temperature and organisms.