MacroecologyMacroecology is the subfield of ecology that deals with the study of relationships between organisms and their environment at large spatial scales to characterise and explain statistical patterns of abundance, distribution and diversity. The term was coined in a small monograph published in Spanish in 1971 by Guillermo Sarmiento and Maximina Monasterio, two Venezuelan researchers working in tropical savanna ecosystems and later used by James Brown of the University of New Mexico and Brian Maurer of Michigan State University in a 1989 paper in Science.
Probability theoryProbability theory or probability calculus is the branch of mathematics concerned with probability. Although there are several different probability interpretations, probability theory treats the concept in a rigorous mathematical manner by expressing it through a set of axioms. Typically these axioms formalise probability in terms of a probability space, which assigns a measure taking values between 0 and 1, termed the probability measure, to a set of outcomes called the sample space.
Endangered Species Act of 1973The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA or "The Act"; 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) is the primary law in the United States for protecting and conserving imperiled species. Designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and development untempered by adequate concern and conservation", the ESA was signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973. The Supreme Court of the United States described it as "the most comprehensive legislation for the preservation of endangered species enacted by any nation".
Local extinctionLocal extinction, also extirpation, is the termination of a species (or other taxon) in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinctions. Local extinctions mark a change in the ecology of an area. It has sometimes been followed by a replacement of the species taken from other locations, such as with wolf reintroduction. BiogeographyMetapopulationPatch dynamics and Habitat fragmentation Glaciation is one factor that leads to local extinction.
FeralA feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some cases, contributed to extinction of indigenous species. The removal of feral species is a major focus of island restoration. A feral animal is one that has escaped from a domestic or captive status and is living more or less as a wild animal, or one that is descended from such animals.
Extinction RebellionExtinction Rebellion (abbreviated as XR) is a UK-headquartered global environmental movement, with the stated aim of using nonviolent civil disobedience to compel government action to avoid tipping points in the climate system, biodiversity loss, and the risk of social and ecological collapse. Extinction Rebellion was established in Stroud in May 2018 by Gail Bradbrook, Simon Bramwell, and Roger Hallam, along with eight other co-founders from the campaign group Rising Up! Its first major action was to occupy the London Greenpeace offices on 17 October 2018, which was followed by the public launch at the "Declaration of Rebellion" on 31 October 2018 outside the UK Parliament.
Protected areaProtected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood, non-timber forest products, water, ...) is limited. The term "protected area" also includes marine protected areas and transboundary protected areas across multiple borders. As of 2016, there are over 161,000 protected areas representing about 17 percent of the world's land surface area (excluding Antarctica).
Capitanian mass extinction eventThe Capitanian mass extinction event, also known as the end-Guadalupian extinction event, the Guadalupian-Lopingian boundary mass extinction, the pre-Lopingian crisis, or the Middle Permian extinction was an extinction event that predated the end-Permian extinction event. The mass extinction occurred during a period of decreased species richness and increased extinction rates near the end of the Middle Permian, also known as the Guadalupian epoch.
