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Ecology is a branch of biology focusing on the relationships between organisms, including human beings, and how they interact with their physical environments. Ecologists study organisms and their environments at the microscopic level up to the level of plants, animals, and larger environments and habitats. One goal of ecology is to analyze how organisms and environments relate so human beings can better manage natural resources such as forests, soils for agriculture, plants, and animals, a science known as applied ecology.^[1][2][3]

Background

German zoologist Ernst Haeckel was the first scientist to use the term ecology in 1869, though the scientific basis for ecology was set by earlier scientists. In the early 19th century, some scientists joined expeditions launched by maritime powers like Great Britain and Spain. German botanist Alexander von Humboldt, considered by many scientists as a founder of ecology, documented his research on the geography of plant species in Latin America and the relationship between plants and the climate in his work Idea for a Plant Geography (1805). Eugen Warming, a Danish botanist and another founder of ecology as a formal scientific discipline, studied plant anatomy in Latin America with the goal of explaining why certain species lived in similar habitats, publishing his research in the book Oecology of Plants: An Introduction to the Study of Plant Communities (1895).^[4]

During the late and early 20th centuries, ecology emerged as a more formal discipline of study due to the work of botanists and biogeographers (biogeography is the study of the distribution of plant and animal species). In 1915, scientists chartered the Ecological Society of America with a focus on conservation. During the 1930s, ecologists began studying land issues associated with the Dust Bowl, a period of intense drought in the midwestern United States.^[4]

In 1970, Congress passed the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), for which one goal is "to create and maintain conditions under which man and nature can exist in productive harmony, and fulfill the social, economic, and other requirements of present and future generations of Americans." NEPA led to the hiring of more ecologists to assist federal agencies, which are all required to submit "a detailed statement of environmental impacts ... for all major actions significantly affecting the environment."^[4][5]

Focus of study

Ecology focuses mainly on biology but is an interdisciplinary field drawing upon chemistry, physics, geology, earth science (the study of the physical constitution of Earth), mathematics, computer science, and more. Ecologists often focus on the following topics:^[6]

• Life processes at the microscopic and macroscopic levels, including how molecules and organisms interact with each other and adapt to their environments
• The movement of energy, such as sunlight and nutrients, through the environment
• The changes in species and environments over a period of decades, centuries, and/or millions of years
• The population and distribution of organisms within a single geographical area
• The practical application of ecology, commonly known as applied ecology, such as forest and land management as well as agriculture.

Approaches and examples

Some ecologists study how invasive species, such as beavers in South America, affect the environment.

Ecology can be broken down into subcategories, including the following:^[1][2][6]

• Population ecology focuses on entire plant and animal species populations and how they interact with other species and their habitats.
• Physiological ecology is the study of how organisms and their component parts and functions interact with the environment over the long and short term.
• Ecosystems ecology focuses on all living and nonliving parts within a particular geographical area, including molecules, soils, plants, and animals in the area.

Examples of the research work performed by ecologists include the following:^[6]

• Living and nonliving elements and their interactions within marshes, wetlands, lakes, and streams.
• Ways in which non-native species enter and reproduce in lakes, rivers, croplands, forests, and other areas.
• The role of chemicals in assisting plants and animals to defend themselves against diseases or predators
• How and which animals carry and transmit diseases
• The study, captive breeding, and reintroduction of endangered species into the wild
• The characteristics and actions of pests and their damage to crops

Major groups

• The Ecological Society of America (ESA) is a professional organization of ecologists established in 1915. The group publishes two peer-reviewed journals, Ecology and The Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America. The ESA contains roughly 10,000 members, including students, teachers in secondary and higher education, and researchers, not all of whom are U.S. citizens.^[7]

See also

• 

  Environmental health

• 

  Environmental science

• 

  Environmental engineering

• 

  Conservation

External links

• Ecological Society of America

Footnotes

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