Glossary - Ant behaviour to solve urban problems
Competitive exclusion: The principle that when two species compete for the same resources one of the species in time will dominate and can cause extinction of the other species.
Cretaceous: A geological period that lasted from approximately 145 to 66 million years ago.
Ecological niche: The role of an organism in a community in terms of the habitat it occupies, its interactions with other organisms and its effect on the environment. A given niche, e.g. the small herbivore niche, may be occupied by different species in different ecosystems and different parts of the world.
Exoskeleton: A cuticle that stabilises the shape of their body.
Extant: Still in existence.
Family: A taxonomic rank in biological classification. The hierarchy of the classification from general to specific is: Domain -> Kingdom -> Phylum -> Class -> Order -> Family -> Genus -> Species.
Mandibles: The lower part of the jaw in vertebrates.
Meiosis: A type of nuclear division which results in daughter nuclei each containing half the number of chromosomes of the parent, i.e. chromosome number is reduced from diploid to haploid.
Order: A taxonomic rank in biological classification. The hierarchy of the classification from general to specific is: Domain -> Kingdom -> Phylum -> Class -> Order -> Family -> Genus -> Species.
Pheromone: A chemical released in minute amounts by one organism which is detected and acts as a signal to another member of the same species.
Phylum: A taxonomic rank in biological classification. The hierarchy of the classification from general to specific is: Domain -> Kingdom -> Phylum -> Class -> Order -> Family -> Genus -> Species.
Primary production: The synthesis of organic compounds from CO2 mostly by photosynthesis with sunlight as energy source, but can also be done by chemosynthesis which uses the oxidation of inorganic molecules as energy source. Primary producers are at the base of the food chain and almost all life is dependent on them.
Taxonomy: The science of classifying organisms or groups of organisms into an hierarchical structure.
Cretaceous: A geological period that lasted from approximately 145 to 66 million years ago.
Ecological niche: The role of an organism in a community in terms of the habitat it occupies, its interactions with other organisms and its effect on the environment. A given niche, e.g. the small herbivore niche, may be occupied by different species in different ecosystems and different parts of the world.
Exoskeleton: A cuticle that stabilises the shape of their body.
Extant: Still in existence.
Family: A taxonomic rank in biological classification. The hierarchy of the classification from general to specific is: Domain -> Kingdom -> Phylum -> Class -> Order -> Family -> Genus -> Species.
Mandibles: The lower part of the jaw in vertebrates.
Meiosis: A type of nuclear division which results in daughter nuclei each containing half the number of chromosomes of the parent, i.e. chromosome number is reduced from diploid to haploid.
Order: A taxonomic rank in biological classification. The hierarchy of the classification from general to specific is: Domain -> Kingdom -> Phylum -> Class -> Order -> Family -> Genus -> Species.
Pheromone: A chemical released in minute amounts by one organism which is detected and acts as a signal to another member of the same species.
Phylum: A taxonomic rank in biological classification. The hierarchy of the classification from general to specific is: Domain -> Kingdom -> Phylum -> Class -> Order -> Family -> Genus -> Species.
Primary production: The synthesis of organic compounds from CO2 mostly by photosynthesis with sunlight as energy source, but can also be done by chemosynthesis which uses the oxidation of inorganic molecules as energy source. Primary producers are at the base of the food chain and almost all life is dependent on them.
Taxonomy: The science of classifying organisms or groups of organisms into an hierarchical structure.
