Endangered speciesAn endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and invasive species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas.
Carbonate rockCarbonate rocks are a class of sedimentary rocks composed primarily of carbonate minerals. The two major types are limestone, which is composed of calcite or aragonite (different crystal forms of CaCO3), and dolomite rock (also known as dolostone), which is composed of mineral dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2). They are usually classified based on texture and grain size. Importantly, carbonate rocks can exist as metamorphic and igneous rocks, too. When recrystallized carbonate rocks are metamorphosed, marble is created.
Ammonium nitrateAmmonium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a white crystalline salt consisting of ions of ammonium and nitrate. It is highly soluble in water and hygroscopic as a solid, although it does not form hydrates. It is predominantly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer. Its other major use is as a component of explosive mixtures used in mining, quarrying, and civil construction.
Carbonate mineralCarbonate minerals are those minerals containing the carbonate ion, CO32-. Calcite group: trigonal Calcite CaCO3 Gaspéite (Ni,Mg,Fe2+)CO3 Magnesite MgCO3 Otavite CdCO3 Rhodochrosite MnCO3 Siderite FeCO3 Smithsonite ZnCO3 Spherocobaltite CoCO3 Aragonite group: orthorhombic Aragonite CaCO3 Cerussite PbCO3 Strontianite SrCO3 Witherite BaCO3 Rutherfordine UO2CO3 Natrite Na2CO3 Dolomite group: trigonal Ankerite CaFe(CO3)2 Dolomite CaMg(CO3)2 Huntite Mg3Ca(CO3)4 Minrecordite CaZn(CO3)2 Barytocalcite BaCa(CO3)2 Carbonate with hydroxide: monoclinic Azurite Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 Hydrocerussite Pb3(CO3)2(OH)2 Malachite Cu2CO3(OH)2 Rosasite (Cu,Zn)2CO3(OH)2 Phosgenite Pb2(CO3)Cl2 Hydrozincite Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 Aurichalcite (Zn,Cu)5(CO3)2(OH)6 Hydromagnesite Mg5(CO3)4(OH)2.
Potassium cyanatePotassium cyanate is an inorganic compound with the formula KOCN (sometimes denoted KCNO). It is a colourless solid. It is used to prepare many other compounds including useful herbicide. Worldwide production of the potassium and sodium salts was 20,000 tons in 2006. The cyanate anion is isoelectronic with carbon dioxide and with the azide anion, being linear. The C-N distance is 121 pm, about 5 pm longer than for cyanide. Potassium cyanate is isostructural with potassium azide.
Ammonium sulfateAmmonium sulfate (American English and international scientific usage; ammonium sulphate in British English); (NH4)2SO4, is an inorganic salt with a number of commercial uses. The most common use is as a soil fertilizer. It contains 21% nitrogen and 24% sulfur. The primary use of ammonium sulfate is as a fertilizer for alkaline soils. In the soil the ammonium ion is released and forms a small amount of acid, lowering the pH balance of the soil, while contributing essential nitrogen for plant growth.
Species richnessSpecies richness is the number of different species represented in an ecological community, landscape or region. Species richness is simply a count of species, and it does not take into account the abundances of the species or their relative abundance distributions. Species richness is sometimes considered synonymous with species diversity, but the formal metric species diversity takes into account both species richness and species evenness. Depending on the purposes of quantifying species richness, the individuals can be selected in different ways.
Wöhler synthesisThe Wöhler synthesis is the conversion of ammonium cyanate into urea. This chemical reaction was described in 1828 by Friedrich Wöhler. It is often cited as the starting point of modern organic chemistry. Although the Wöhler reaction concerns the conversion of ammonium cyanate, this salt appears only as an (unstable) intermediate. Wöhler demonstrated the reaction in his original publication with different sets of reactants: a combination of cyanic acid and ammonia, a combination of silver cyanate and ammonium chloride, a combination of lead cyanate and ammonia and finally from a combination of mercury cyanate and cyanatic ammonia (which is again cyanic acid with ammonia).
UrineUrine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and in many other animals. Urine flows from the kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder. Urination results in urine being excreted from the body through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates many by-products that are rich in nitrogen and must be cleared from the bloodstream, such as urea, uric acid, and creatinine. These by-products are expelled from the body during urination, which is the primary method for excreting water-soluble chemicals from the body.
Rare speciesA rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon, scarce, or infrequently encountered. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and is distinct from the term endangered or threatened. Designation of a rare species may be made by an official body, such as a national government, state, or province. The term more commonly appears without reference to specific criteria. The International Union for Conservation of Nature does not normally make such designations, but may use the term in scientific discussion.
