Terms : Hide Images
| 5276353889 | Climate | average weather that occurs in a given region over a long period of time. | 0 | |
| 5276355950 | Weather | short term conditions of the atmosphere in a local area, which include temperature, moisture, air pressure and wind. | 1 | |
| 5276359200 | Troposphere | thin layer of the atmosphere closest to the surface of the earth in which temperature decreases with altitude. | 2 | |
| 5276361501 | Stratosphere | layer of the atmosphere above the troposphere, in which temperature increases with altitude. | 3 | |
| 5276365428 | Albedo | the percentage of incoming solar radiation that is reflected from a surface. |  | 4 |
| 5276368683 | Saturation point | the maximum amount of water vapor in the air at a given temperature. | 5 | |
| 5276369527 | Adiabatic cooling | the cooling effect of reduced pressure on air as it rises higher in the atmosphere and expands. | 6 | |
| 5276371938 | Adiabatic heating | the heating effect of increased pressure on air as it sinks toward the surface of the Earth and decreases in volume. | 7 | |
| 5276374972 | Latent heat release | release of energy when water vapor in the atmosphere condenses into liquid water. | 8 | |
| 5276379316 | Atmospheric convection current | global patterns of air movement that are initiated by the unequal heating of Earth. | 9 | |
| 5276382357 | Hadley cell | an atmospheric convection current that cycles between the equator and 30 degrees north latitude and 30 degrees south latitude. |  | 10 |
| 5276392264 | Intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) | the latitude that receives the most intense sunlight, which causes the ascending branches of the two Hadley cells to converge. |  | 11 |
| 5276398536 | Polar cell | an atmospheric convection current formed by rising air at 60 degrees north and south latitudes and sinks at the poles. | 12 | |
| 5276409613 | Ferrell cell | an atmospheric convection current formed by the movement of the Hadley cells and Polar cells. |  | 13 |
| 5276420452 | Coriolis effect | the deflection of an object's (wind) path due to the rotation of the Earth. | 14 | |
| 5276425318 | Rain shadow | a region with dry conditions found on the leeward side of a mountain range as a result of humid winds from the ocean causing precipitation on the windward side of the mountains. |  | 15 |
| 5349991471 | Terrestrial biome | geographic region categorized by a particular combination of average annual temperature, annual precipitation and distinctive plant growth forms on land | 16 | |
| 5349999908 | Aquatic biome | an aquatic region characterized by a particular combination of salinity, depth and water flow. |  | 17 |
| 5350004473 | Tundra | a cold and treeless biome with low growing vegetation |  | 18 |
| 5350007952 | Permafrost | impermeable, permanently frozen layer of soil |  | 19 |
| 5350010582 | Boreal forest | forest biome made up primarily of coniferous evergreen trees that can tolerate cold winters and short growing seasons |  | 20 |
| 5350025944 | Temperate rainforest | coastal biome typified by moderate temperatures and high precipitation |  | 21 |
| 5350029563 | Temperate seasonal forest | biome with warm summers and cold winters with over 39 inches of annual precipitation |  | 22 |
| 5350039737 | Woodland/Shrubland | biome characterized by hot, dry summer and mild rainy winters |  | 23 |
| 5350049901 | Temperate grassland/cold desert | biome characterized by cold, harsh winters and hot, dry summers |  | 24 |
| 5350056457 | Tropical rainforest | warm and wet biome found between 20N and 20S latitudes with little seasonal temperature variation and high precipitation |  | 25 |
| 5350074733 | Tropical seasonal forest / savannah | biome marked by warm temperatures and distinct wet and dry seasons |  | 26 |
| 5350080305 | Subtropical desert | biome prevailing at about 30N and 30S with hot temperatures, extremely dry conditions and sparse vegetation. |  | 27 |
| 5366750720 | Species richness | number of species in a given area | 28 | |
| 5366701913 | Species evenness | relative proportion of individuals within the different species in a given area |  | 29 |
| 5366704440 | Phylogeny | branching pattern of evolutionary relationships |  | 30 |
| 5366705288 | Evolution | change in the genetic composition of a population over time | 31 | |
| 5366707206 | Microevolution | evolution below the species level | 32 | |
| 5366708200 | Macro evolution | evolution that gives rise to a new species, genera, families, classes or phyla. | 33 | |
| 5366710012 | Gene | physical location on the chromosome within each cell of an organism |  | 34 |
| 5366711657 | Genotype | complete set of genes in an individual | 35 | |
| 5366712464 | Phenotype | set of traits expressed by an individual | 36 | |
| 5366714146 | Mutation | random change in the genetic code produced by a mistake in the copying process | 37 | |
| 5366714871 | Recombination | genetic process by which one chromosome breaks off and attaches to another chromosome during reproductive cell division | 38 | |
| 5366717966 | Evolution by artificial selection | process in which humans determine which individuals breed, typically with a preconceived set of traits in mind. | 39 | |
| 5366724334 | Evolution by natural selection | process in which the environment determines which individuals survive and reproduce. | 40 | |
| 5366727968 | Fitness | an individual's ability to survive and reproduce | 41 | |
| 5366729226 | Adaptation | a trait that improves an individuals fitness | 42 | |
| 5366730553 | Gene flow | process by which individuals move from one population to another and thereby alter the genetic composition of both populations | 43 | |
| 5366737502 | Genetic drift | a change in the genetic composition of a population over time as a result of random mating |  | 44 |
| 5366739302 | Bottleneck effect | a reduction in the genetic diversity of a population caused by a reduction in its size |  | 45 |
| 5366742643 | Extinction | the death of the last member of a species | 46 | |
| 5366743259 | Founder effect | a change in the genetic composition of a population as a result of descending from a small number of colonizing individuals |  | 47 |
| 5395893588 | Geographic isolation | physical separation of a group of individuals from others of the same species | 48 | |
| 5395923663 | Allopatric speciation | process of speciation that occurs with geographic isolation |  | 49 |
| 5395925360 | Reproductive isolation | result of two populations within a species evolving separately to the point that they can no longer interbreed and produce viable offspring. |  | 50 |
| 5395927289 | Sympatric speciation | evolution of one species into two without geographic isolation | 51 | |
| 5395929508 | Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) | an organism produced by copying genes from a species with a desirable trait and inserting then into another species |  | 52 |
| 5395931955 | Range of tolerance | limit to the abiotic conditions that a species can tolerate |  | 53 |
| 5395932548 | Fundamental niche | suite of abiotic conditions under which a species can survive, grow and reproduce | 54 | |
| 5395933866 | Realized niche | range of abiotic and biotic conditions under which a species actually lives | 55 | |
| 5395934953 | Distribution | areas of the world in which a species lives | 56 | |
| 5395937534 | Niche generalist | species that can live under a wide range of abiotic and biotic conditions | 57 | |
| 5395938303 | Niche specialist | species that is specialized to line a specific habitat or to feed on a small group of species | 58 | |
| 5395940487 | Mass extinction | large extinction of species in a relatively short period of time |  | 59 |
| 5424360624 | Endemic species | a species that lives in a very small area of the world and nowhere else | 60 | |
| 5424363868 | Biodiversity hotspot | an area that contains a high proportion of all the species found on Earth |  | 61 |
| 5424371442 | IUCN Threatened species | according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), species that have a high risk of extinction in the future | 62 | |
| 5424376222 | Near-threatened species | species that are very likely to become threatened in the future | 63 | |
| 5424379549 | Least concern species | species that are widespread and abundant | 64 | |
| 5424382760 | Intrinsic value | value independent of any benefit to humans | 65 | |
| 5424384841 | Instrumental value | worth as an instrument or a tool that can be used to accomplish a goal | 66 | |
| 5424387434 | Provision | a good that humans can use directly | 67 | |
| 5424399451 | Native species | species that line in their historic range, typically where they have lived for thousands or millions of years | 68 | |
| 5424402912 | Exotic species | species living outside its historic range (AKA alien species) | 69 | |
| 5424406277 | Invasive species | species (usually exotic) that spreads rapidly across large areas and is likely to cause harm |  | 70 |
| 5424415021 | Lacey Act | U.S. act that prohibits interstate shipping of all illegally harvested plants and animals | 71 | |
| 5424424366 | Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora | CITES - 1973 treaty formed to control the international trade of threatened plants and animals |  | 72 |
| 5424433966 | IUCN Red List | list of worldwide threatened species | 73 | |
| 5424458005 | Marine Mammal Protection Act | 1972 US act to protect declining populations of marine mammals | 74 | |
| 5424463992 | Endangered species | species that is in danger of extinction within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range | 75 | |
| 5424471792 | US Threatened species | according to the US legislation, any species that is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range | 76 | |
| 5424507195 | Convention on Biological Diversity | international treaty to help protect biodiversity | 77 | |
| 5424510931 | Edge habitat | habitat that occurs where two different communities come together, typically forming an abrupt transition, such as where a grassy field meets a forest | 78 | |
| 5424515893 | Biosphere reserve | protected area consisting of zones that vary in the amount of permissible human impact | 79 |
