entries from a dictionary of ecology

itt entries from a dictionary of ecology

etchplain

A plain produced in a tropical or subtropical environment as a result of a phase of deep chemical weathering during tectonic stability, followed by one of erosion in which the weathered debris is stripped away. Etchplain relief reflects differences in the resistance of the bedrock to weathering and involves double planation.

Mie scattering

The scattering of electromagnetic radiation, mainly in a forward direction, by spherical particles. The theory was proposed by Gustave Mie in 1908. See also Rayleigh Scattering.

plicate

Folded, as of a palm leaf.

recharge area

1. The geographical area of an aquifer in which there is a downward movement of water towards the water-table. 2. The area that acts as a catchment for any particular aquifer.

red core of strawberry

A serious disease of strawberries caused by the fungus Phytophthora fragariae. Infested plants are stunted and their roots become dark brown or black with a characteristic red core (stele).

^^^ name for pysch band

gonozooid

In some colonial coelenterates, a reproductive polyp.

fuliginous

Soot-colored or dusky.

cyclosis

The processes of dissipation of cyclonic air circulation around a depression, or the weakening of lesser cyclonic features.

nonsense mutation

A mutation of which results in a nonsense codon.

norte (norther)

A cold, northerly, local wind that affects the coasts of the Gulf of Mexico, most commonly in winter. Sometimes it brings rainfall.

Campbell-Stokes sunshine recorder

A device in which a glass sphere concentrates the Sun's rays on to a calibrated paper, where the resulting burns register the time and duration of sunshine. The instrument must be pre-set for a given latitude. This type of recorder has been in use since about 1880.

^^^ lost Kinks album

arrhenotoky

Production of males from unfertilized eggs, a phenomenon that is characteristic of al Hymenoptera (ants, bees, wasps, etc.).

oceanicity

The effects of maritime influences on a climate. Compare continentality.

points to anyone using that one on a beardo thread

p-zone

A biostratigraphic zone that is distinguished by pelagic fossils (e.g. ammonites and graptolites). The term was proposed in 1965 by T.G. Miller. Compare b-zone.

http://www.pe.com/imagesdaily/2007/07-18/pzone_dude18_1_400a.jpg

that doesn't look right :-/

pycnocline

The change of density with depth in a water column.

rival

Pertaining to a stream or small river.

seiche

A stationary or standing wave in an enclosed body of water (e.g. a bay or lake). Seiches are usually the product of intense storm activity.

secchi disc

A disc used in a simple method for measuring the transparency of water. The disc is 20 cm across and divided into alternate black and white quadrants. It is lowered into water on a line until the difference between the black and white areas just ceases to be visiible, at which point the depth is recorded. The secchi disc provides a convenient method for comparing the transparency of water at different sites. The disc was invented by the Italian Jesuit and eminent astro-physicist Angelo Secchi (1818-78).

the book has a picture. basically it's a circle that looks like the old mac os 9 beachball. there's a hauling loop in the center. you lower the disc into the water such that the plane of the circle is parallel to the plane of the water surface, and let it sink. neat!

hybrid swarm

A continuous series of hybrids that are morphologically distinct from one another, resulting from the hybridization of two species followed by the crossing and backcrossing of subsequent generations. The hybrids are very variable, owing to segregation for alleles at each locus.

latent learning

The formation of associations that appear to bring the animal neither reward nor punishment (although novel experiences may themselves constitute a reward). There is a delay between exposure to the learning situation and the performance of a behaviour pattern that demonstrates the effect of learning. For example, rats will explore a maze without apparent reward or punishment and will remember the information they obtain; later, when rewards are presented, those rats will perform better at finding their way through the maze than rats with no exploratory experience.

microtine cycles

The periodic, density dependent fluctuations in population size, involving mass migrations, of certain animal speices, the best known of which is the Scandinavian lemming, of the rodent subfamily Microtinae, after which the phenomenon is named. An abundance of nutritious food (phosphate being the limiting nutrient for lemmings) causes a rapid increase in numbers; their feeding reduces plant productivity until overcrowding triggers the migration. Cyclical locust migrations can cause catastrophic damage to agricultural crops over large areas.

puddled soil (poached soil)

Soil in which the structure has been structure has been destroyed by the physical impact of raindrops, by tillage when wet, or by trampling by animals.

oops

psychrosphere

In an ocean, the region of cold water that lies beneath the warmer water of the thermosphere.

reshabar

A regional south-easterly wind that affects mountain slopes in southern Kurdistan (the plateau and mountains in south-eastern Turkey, northern Iraq, northern Syria, and western Iran). The strong, swirling wind is hot and dry in summer but brings cold conditions in winter.

gbx you have made a wonderful tread.

most of these words are total scripps howard spelling bee fodder

estovers (common of)

1. The right to gather lying and dead standing wood, usually up to a stated size, for firewood on common land. Dead standing wood and branches can be obtained 'by hook or by crook', ie.e. by the use of a blunt tool. 2. Firewood, timber, and other materials taken from common land as a privilege.

ethogram

A detailed record of an animal's behavior.

maiden

A tree arising from a seed, or more rarely a sucker, which has not been coppiced or pollarded.

nival

Applie to those geomorphological processes that result from the action of snow.

protalus rampart

A ridge of rock debris, less than 10 m high, found near the base of a steep inland rock face. It consists of frost-shattered material that has been carried some distance from the face down the steep surface of a basal snow bank.

extirpation

The bringing of a species to extinction within a part of its range.

draa

A high (more than 300 m) sand ridge or chain of dunes in the Sahara, lying about 0.5-5 km from its nearest neighbor and moving at 2-5 cm per year. It is the largest land-form of the erg or sand desert. A star-shaped dune, or 'rhourd', is developed at the site where two draa chains cross.

comber

A deep-water wave that has a breaking crest blown forward by a strong wind. The term is also applied to a long-period spilling breaker.

cloud street

A band (or bands) of (usually) cumulus cloud parallel to the wind direction in a sky that is otherwise more or less clear of cloud. Streets may form in an air mass at a sharply demarcated convection layer, with separate thermals producing parallel streets.

halo-

A prefix meaning 'pertaining to salt', derived from the Greek hals, halos, meaning 'salt'.

haboob

From the Arabic habb meaning 'to blow', a local name for a dust storm in northern Sudan. Typically, the storm is experienced late in the day during summer.

if there is a book out there that catalogs the named winds of the world's cultures, i would v much like to read it

hag

A parcel of wood that has been marked off for cutting. See also cant and coupe.

what do you have a dictionary of ecology for, gbx? (other than posting entries on ilx)

murine

Of or like a mouse; mouse-colored.

to read, in my quieter moments

nautical mile

The unit of length that is used in ocean and air navigation, equivalent to one minute (1/60°) change in latitude. It is internationally defined as being equal to 1852 meters.

i always forget that there is an actual reason for the knot being a useful unit for speed

ridding

An area from which a wood-land crop has been taken.

dune slack

A flat-bottomed, hollow zone within a sand-dune system that has developed over impervious strata. The slack may result from erosion or blow-out of the dune system, and the flat base level is therefore close to or at the permanent water-table level. Characteristically, dune slacks have rich, marshy flora, with Salix species (willows) as typical woody colonizers.

maestro

A local north-westerly wind of the Adriatic Sea which affects the western coasts, especially in summer. The term is also applied to north-westerly winds in the Ionian Sea and to winds off the coasts of Corsica and Sardinia.

divisive method

A system of hierarchical classification that proceeds by subdividing the whole into successively smaller and more homogeneous units.

edaphic

Of the soil, or influenced by the soil. Edaphic factors that influence soil organisms are derived from the development of soils and are both physical and biological (eg mineral and humus content, and pH).

flabelliform

Shaped like a fan.

flow till

Sediments which flow after they have been deposited by ablation. See till.

seif dune

A linear sand dune, consisting of curved, sword-like components, which is found in hot deserts. Typically it is developed by the elongation of a barchan arm, and built up by winds blowing from two principal directions.

Lydekker's line

A line that defines the easternmost extension of oriental animals into the zone of mixing between the Oriental and Australian faunal regions. The corresponding western limit of the zone is known as Wallace's line, and marks the maximum extent of marsupials in that direction. It is named after Richard Lydekker (1849-1915).

muscicolous

Growing on or among mosses (Musci).

haar

Especially in coastal areas of eastern Scotland and north-eastern England, a common name for a sea fog; these are frequent in early summer.

hadal zone

The part of the ocean that lies in very deep trenches below the general level of the deep-ocean floor (the abyssal zone).

I have a request for rubisco
Tihs one goes out to nabisco

Can you find one that involves paramagnetism?

hair hygrometer

An instrument that indicates relative humidity, based on the expansion and contraction of a treated human hair.

^^^^ WTF

xp standby

I am familiar with the hair hygrometer, and I love it!

you will be shocked, as i am, to discover that that very important protein RUBISCO is not listed in my dictionary

OOOOO!

What the HECKINY?

Wow, how to make yourown hair hygrometer!
http://www.pbs.org/weta/roughscience/series2/challenges/weather/page11.html

biomagnetism

The influence of the magnetic filed on living organisms, which is strong in some species. Certain Spirillum bacteria orient themselves along the geomagnetic lines of force. Higher organisms (e.g. snails, bees, birds, porpoises, and possibly humans) appear able to sense and utilize geomagnetic field directions for purposes of orientation. Strong magnetic fields may be detrimental to health in humans, but the effects of medium strength fields have not been studied. Magnetic fields are also used for scanning biological organisms.

sorry no paramagnetism

okay home hygrometer is awes

gelifluction

The slow flow of water-lubricated, unsorted material and rock debris over perennially frozen ground, and on slopes as low as 1°. It is the cold-climate variety of solifluction and occurs only in the active layer (usually to a depth of 3 m).

^^^ this is rewarding to me, as a concept