Environment, MAM-PIN
Biological diversity is key to a healthy ecosystem, whether it’s a small biological community or the global biosphere. Ecology, which studies the relationships between organisms and their environment, is an invaluable science that helps us understand what allows an ecological community to thrive.
Environment Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Mammoth Cave National Park, national park containing an extensive system of limestone caverns in west-central Kentucky,......
Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, wildlife sanctuary in western Assam state, eastern India. It is situated at the foot......
maquis, scrubland plant community of the Mediterranean region, composed primarily of leathery broad-leaved evergreen......
marine ecosystem, complex of living organisms in the ocean environment. Marine waters cover two-thirds of the surface......
marine protected area (MPA), discrete parcel of ocean or estuarine ecosystems that is managed according to special......
George Perkins Marsh was a U.S. diplomat, scholar, and conservationist whose greatest work, Man and Nature (1864),......
mass extinction event, any circumstance that results in the loss of a significant portion of Earth’s living species......
Peter Matthiessen was an American novelist, naturalist, and wilderness writer whose work dealt with the destructive......
McMurdo Station, research and logistics installation located on the Hut Point Peninsula, on Ross Island, Antarctica.......
Chico Mendes was a Brazilian labour leader and conservationist who defended the interests of the seringueiros,......
mesofauna, in soil science, intermediate-sized animals (those greater than 40 microns in length, which is about......
mesopredator release, in ecology, a phenomenon in which populations of medium-sized predators rapidly increase......
metapopulation, in ecology, a regional group of connected populations of a species. For a given species, each metapopulation......
methane burp hypothesis, in oceanography and climatology, an explanation of the sudden onset of the Paleocene-Eocene......
microplastics, small pieces of plastic, less than 5 mm (0.2 inch) in length, that occur in the environment as a......
migration, in ethology, the regular, usually seasonal, movement of all or part of an animal population to and from......
- Introduction
- Seasonal, Nocturnal, Migration Paths
- Spawning, Migration Patterns, Fish
- Catadromous, Spawning, Habitats
- Bird Species, Patterns, & Adaptations
- Seasonal, Intertropical, Patterns
- Seasonal, Migration Patterns, Mammals
- Navigation, Orientation, Animal
- Seasonal, Physiological, Stimulus
- Seasonal, Patterns, Adaptations
- Seasonal, Habitat, Survival
Milutin Milankovitch was a Serbian mathematician and geophysicist, best known for his work that linked long-term......
mimicry, in biology, phenomenon characterized by the superficial resemblance of two or more organisms that are......
Jack Miner was a Canadian naturalist, author, and lecturer who won a reputation as a leading bird conservationist......
minimum viable population (MVP), ecological threshold that specifies the smallest number of individuals in a species......
mixed forest, a vegetational transition between coniferous forest and broad-leaved deciduous forest, especially......
monsoon, a major wind system that seasonally reverses its direction—such as one that blows for approximately six......
Mont Sainte-Anne, provincial park, Quebec, Canada, located 25 miles (40 km) east of Quebec overlooking the northern......
moor, tract of open country that may be either dry with heather and associated vegetation or wet with an acid peat......
mortality, in demographic usage, the frequency of death in a population. In general, the risk of death at any given......
Morton National Park, national park in eastern New South Wales, Australia, lying in the coastal range 100 miles......
Mount Hood National Forest, mountainous, heavily forested region in northwestern Oregon, U.S. The forest starts......
Mount Rainier National Park, scenic area of the Cascade Range in west-central Washington, U.S., about 35 miles......
Mount Revelstoke National Park, park, southeastern British Columbia, Canada, occupying the western slope of the......
mountain ecosystem, complex of living organisms in mountainous areas. Mountain lands provide a scattered but diverse......
Mountain Zebra National Park, national park in Eastern Cape province, South Africa. It is situated in the semiarid......
Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, wildlife preserve in western Tamil Nadu state, southern India. Established in 1940,......
Muir Woods National Monument, one of the two virgin stands of coastal redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) in northern......
John Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, writer, and advocate of U.S. forest conservation, who was largely......
Margaret Murie was an American naturalist, conservationist, and writer who was a central contributor in efforts......
mutualism, association between organisms of two different species in which each benefits. Mutualistic arrangements......
mycorrhiza, an intimate association between the branched, tubular filaments (hyphae) of a fungus (kingdom Fungi)......
Nairobi National Park, national park, in south-central Kenya, 5 miles (8 km) south of Nairobi. It was the first......
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the first major U.S. environmental law. Enacted in 1969 and signed into......
national forest, in the United States, any of numerous forest areas set aside under federal supervision for the......
national monument, in the United States, any of numerous areas reserved by act of Congress or presidential proclamation......
national park, an area set aside by a national government for the preservation of the natural environment. A national......
National Park Service (NPS), agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages and maintains several hundred......
national seashore, in the United States, any of a number of coastal areas reserved by the federal government for......
National Trust, British organization founded in 1895 and incorporated by the National Trust Act (1907) for the......
Natural Bridges National Monument, scenic area in southeastern Utah, U.S., containing three natural sandstone bridges.......
natural disaster, any calamitous occurrence generated by the effects of natural, rather than human-driven, phenomena......
natural resource, any biological, mineral, or aesthetic asset afforded by nature without human intervention that......
Nature Conservancy, nonprofit organization dedicated to environmental conservation and the preservation of biodiversity.......
nature reserve, area set aside for the purpose of preserving certain animals, plants, or both. A nature reserve......
Ndumu Game Reserve, park in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. The reserve is located on the Mozambique border......
Nemonte Nenquimo is an Indigenous activist, author, and leader of the Waorani people of the Ecuadorian Amazon.......
Neotropical region, one of the six major biogeographic areas of the world defined on the basis of its characteristic......
neritic zone, shallow marine environment extending from mean low water down to 200-metre (660-foot) depths, generally......
neuston, group of organisms found on top of or attached to the underside of the surface film of water. The neuston......
Nevado de Toluca National Park, park in México state, central Mexico. It is situated in the municipality of Zinacantepec,......
Nancy Newhall was an American photography critic, conservationist, and editor who was an important contributor......
Ngorongoro Conservation Area, national conservation area in the Arusha region of northern Tanzania, southeast of......
niche, in ecology, all of the interactions of a species with the other members of its community, including competition,......
nitrogen cycle, circulation of nitrogen in various forms through nature. Nitrogen, a component of proteins and......
nitrogen fixation, any natural or industrial process that causes free nitrogen (N2), which is a relatively inert......
noise pollution, unwanted or excessive sound that can have deleterious effects on human health, wildlife, and environmental......
William Nordhaus is an American economist who, with Paul Romer, was awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize for Economics......
North Cascades National Park, large wilderness area in northwestern Washington, U.S. The park was established in......
nuclear winter, the environmental devastation that certain scientists contend would probably result from the hundreds......
ocean warming, the absorption of surplus heat attributed to global warming by water in the oceans. Ocean warming......
Oglala National Grassland, federally recognized prairie grassland of northwestern Nebraska, U.S. The designated......
oil spill, leakage of petroleum onto the surface of a large body of water. Oceanic oil spills became a major environmental......
old-growth forest, a climax forest in the late stages of stand development containing large, old trees and a complex......
Olympic National Park, ecologically diverse area occupying much of the Olympic Peninsula in northwestern Washington,......
omnivore, animal with wide food preferences, which can eat both plant and animal matter. Many small birds and mammals......
open habitat, part of a landscape that is not enclosed by trees. Open habitat may include plains, tundra, polar......
Ordovician-Silurian extinction, global mass extinction event occurring during the Hirnantian Age (445.2 million......
Oregon Caves National Monument, cave complex in the Siskiyou Mountains of southwestern Oregon, U.S., near the California......
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, large desert area in southwestern Arizona, U.S. It is situated along the Mexican......
overharvesting, exploiting a natural resource until its supply is so diminished that its exploitation is no longer......
overpopulation, Situation in which the number of individuals of a given species exceeds the number that its environment......
oxygen cycle, circulation of oxygen in various forms through nature. Free in the air and dissolved in water, oxygen......
Padjelanta National Park, park in Norrbotten län (county), northwestern Sweden, adjoining Norway (west) and Sarek......
parasitic plant, plant that obtains all or part of its nutrition from another plant (the host) without contributing......
parasitism, relationship between two species of plants or animals in which one benefits at the expense of the other,......
parasitoid, an insect whose larvae feed and develop within or on the bodies of other arthropods. Each parasitoid......
Paris Agreement, international treaty, named for the city of Paris, France, in which it was adopted in December......
Orlando Park was a U.S. entomologist known chiefly for his work on the biology and taxonomy of insects comprising......
Thomas Park was a U.S. animal ecologist known for his experiments with beetles in analyzing population dynamics.......
Timothy Parsons is a Canadian marine biologist who advocated a holistic approach to studying ocean environments.......
Particulate matter is a type of air pollution that consists of airborne suspensions of extremely small solid or......
patch dynamics, in ecology, a theoretical approach positing that the structure, function, and dynamics of an ecological......
peak oil theory, a contention that conventional sources of crude oil, as of the early 21st century, either have......
pelagic zone, ecological realm that includes the entire ocean water column. Of all the inhabited Earth environments,......
Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, wildlife preserve in south-central Kerala state, southern India. The sanctuary is noted......
Permian extinction, a series of extinction pulses that contributed to the greatest mass extinction in Earth’s history.......
Pierre Perrault was a French hydrologist whose investigation of the origin of springs was instrumental in establishing......
Roger Tory Peterson was an American ornithologist, author, conservationist, and wildlife artist whose field books......
Petrified Forest National Park, desert area containing plant and animal fossils and archaeological sites in eastern......
phenology, the study of phenomena or happenings. It is applied to the recording and study of the dates of recurrent......
phosphorus cycle, circulation of phosphorus in various forms through nature. Of all the elements recycled in the......
photic zone, surface layer of the ocean that receives sunlight. The uppermost 80 m (260 feet) or more of the ocean,......
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, colourful sandstone cliffs lining the southern shore of Lake Superior in the......
Gifford Pinchot was a pioneer of U.S. forestry and conservation and a public official. Pinchot graduated from Yale......