🔖KEY CONCEPTS IN ECOLOGY: Check out our curated series of reading lists & introductions from our journals to help you learn the key topics in #ecology 🧵1/17
ADAPTATIONS TO VARIABLE ENVIRONMENTS Since the pioneering work of P & R Grant, ecologists have learned so much about how natural selection operates in the wild by studying adaptations to variable environments in a number of different systems 🧵2/17 buff.ly/3vEIqtV
COMMUNITY STRUCTURE Defined by the number of species & their abundance in the community, which both derive from community assembly processes 🧵3/17 buff.ly/3UXTlte
COMMUNITY SUCCESSION Succession describes the natural dynamics that occur over the course of community assembly, often as part of a transition between different #ecosystem types 🧵4/17 buff.ly/48AdIjp
COMPETITION Deciphering how #species interact is a top priority for ecologists, as it holds the key for effective #conservation & #ecosystem management, & for unlocking the complexity of natural communities, especially competitive interactions 🧵5/17 buff.ly/48pHK9z
COMPLEX INTERACTIONS & FOODWEBS #Ecological networks emerge from interactions within & between #species & describe the interconnected nature of #biodiversity 🧵6/17 buff.ly/49Wzper
CONSERVATION OF GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY A central focus of ecological research is to understand interactions among species & their #environment & the consequences of losing species due to #habitat alteration, invasive species, or climate change 🧵7/17 buff.ly/48EAdnc
ECOSYSTEM STRUCTURE & ENERGY FLOW All life depends on energy, & #ecosystems are structured by the flow of energy through different #organisms 🧵8/17 buff.ly/3UYxQse
LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY & MACROECOLOGY #Landscape #ecology & #macroecology are related fields within ecology, but they focus on different scales of ecological organisation 🧵9/17 buff.ly/3RGcrSV
LIFE & THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT The physical #environment & spatial variation in #climate set the stage for #ecology & #evolution to occur 🧵10/17 buff.ly/3IiOF9P