Ecology meaning (what is it, concept and definition)

What is Ecology:

Ecology is a branch of biology in which the interactions between living things with the habitat where they are found are studied and analyzed, that is, the relationships that exist between biotic factors (relationships between living things) and abiotic factors (environmental conditions).

Etymologically, the word ecology derives from the Greek ökologie composed of the union of the Greek words oikos , which means 'house', 'home' or 'dwelling', and logos , which means 'study' or 'treatise'. In this sense, ecology means 'home study'.

It was Ernst Haeckel, a German scientist, who created the term ecology in 1869 in order to designate a name for science that studies the relationships between living things and the environment.

Therefore, the object of study of ecology is to determine how abiotic factors (humidity, temperature, among others) interact with biotic factors (relationship between the great diversity of living beings found in the same habitat).

Hence, ecology pays particular attention to how the particular characteristics of a habitat influence the development, modification and behavior of different species.

In this sense, the concept of human ecology refers to the scientific study of the relationships between human beings and the environment, including natural conditions, interactions and economic, psychological, social and cultural aspects. Therefore, ecology focuses on studying ecosystems or populations in general.

Likewise, ecology is a science in which studies are carried out on what may be the changes that ecosystems may undergo from the activities of human beings.

It is important to highlight the importance of ecological studies, which are multidisciplinary, making it possible to expand knowledge in this area of ​​science, as well as to design strategies and mechanisms focused on the preservation and conservation of the environment.

On the other hand, today the term ecological goes beyond scientific research, it is now part of political campaigns and social movements that seek the protection and conscious interaction of the human being with the environment.

Therefore, ecology has adopted an environmental character and its objective is to care for and maintain the balance of human activities with those of our habitat.

See also:

• Biology Environmental balance Ecosystem

Main branches of ecology

The main branches of study and research into which ecology is divided are the following:

• Autoecology: a branch of ecology that studies the adaptations of species to certain conditions of abiotic factors. Demoecology (population dynamics): branch that studies, from ecology and demography, the main characteristics of the communities or population that occupy a certain habitat. Synecology (community ecology): branch of ecology that studies the interaction between biological communities and ecosystems. Agroecology: branch that starts from the knowledge of ecology and agronomy to develop food production models that take into account both the ecosystem and the social environment. Ecophysiology (environmental ecology): branch of ecology studying physiological phenomena in the environment, which may experience changes due to various natural phenomena or human activity. Macroecology: branch of ecology studying ecological patterns that are repeated on a large scale.

Ecological interactions

In ecology, the processes, dynamics and interactions between all living things in a population, a community, an ecosystem or the biosphere are studied.

Ecological interactions are characterized by the benefit of two living beings (harmonics) or by the harm of one of them (inharmonic), and can occur between beings of the same species (intraspecific) or of different species (interspecific).

• Harmonic intraspecific relations: society (organization of individuals of the same species) and the colony (group of individuals of the same species with different degrees of dependence on each other). Inharmonic intraspecific relations: cannibalism and intraspecific and interspecific competitions. They are relations between equal species, but there is a damage on at least one of the sides. Harmonic interspecific relationships:. Mutualism (or symbiosis), the protocooperation, the inquilism (or epibiosis) and commensal relationships interspecific inharmonious: the amensalismo (or antibiosis), herbivory, predation, parasitism and slavery.