ecology

Also known as ecological science

Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere levels. Ecology overlaps with the closely related sciences of biogeography, evolutionary biology, genetics, ethology, and natural history.

OverviewAI-generated

Ecology is an academic discipline and field of study that serves as the study of the ecosystem. It is practiced by ecologists and is distinct from ethology. The subject encompasses several specific areas, including human ecology, plant ecology, genetic ecology, and animal ecology.

The topic is referenced by 5,612 other encyclopedia articles. It appears in the Commons category "Ecology" and has a main category of Category:Ecology. The subject is associated with the Portal:Ecology and is listed on Wikipedia:List of articles all languages should have and Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/4. It is described by sources such as the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Granat Encyclopedic Dictionary, and New International Encyclopedia.

Synthesized by Vinony from 17 facts across 3 sources: Wikidata, PubMed, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Research

335,036 papers

The Sensory Ecology of Speciation.ReviewCold Spring Harbor perspectives in biology · 2024Dalbosco Dell'Aglio D, Rivas-Sánchez DF, Wright DS et al.DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a041428
Ecology and evolution of cycad-feeding Lepidoptera.ReviewEcology letters · 2020Whitaker MRL, Salzman SDOI: 10.1111/ele.13581
A century of statistical Ecology.ReviewEcology · 2024Gilbert NA, Amaral BR, Smith OM et al.DOI: 10.1002/ecy.4283
Ecosystem ecology needs an ecology of molecules.ReviewTrends in ecology & evolution · 2025Freeman EC, Peller T, Altermatt FDOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2024.12.006
The macroecology of landscape ecology.ReviewTrends in ecology & evolution · 2022Banks-Leite C, Betts MG, Ewers RM et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2022.01.005
The Next Generation of Microbial Ecology and Its Importance in Environmental Sustainability.ReviewMicrobial ecology · 2023Lemke M, DeSalle RDOI: 10.1007/s00248-023-02185-y
Trait-based ecology, trait-free ecology, and in between.ReviewThe New phytologist · 2025Westoby MDOI: 10.1111/nph.20197
Ecology: correct the digital data divide.Nature · 2023Sethi S, Ewers RM, Balakrishnan RDOI: 10.1038/d41586-023-01481-4

via PubMed

Wikidata facts

Has part: animal ecology
Image: Grib skov.jpg

Show 12 more facts

Commons category: Ecology
topic's main category: Category:Ecology
topic's main Wikimedia portal: Portal:Ecology
on focus list of Wikimedia project: Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/4
is the study of: ecosystem
practiced by: ecologist
Stack Exchange tag: biology.stackexchange.com/tags/ecology
different from: ethology
history of topic: history of ecology
P8168: Gaon
topic has template: Q14359959
NCI Thesaurus ID: C16526

Sources (7)

via Wikidata · CC0

~46 min read

Encyclopedic overview

47 sections

Contents

Levels, scope, and scale of organization
Hierarchy
Biodiversity
Habitat
Niche
Niche construction
Biome
Biosphere
Population ecology
Metapopulations and migration
Community ecology
Ecosystem ecology
Food webs
Trophic levels
Keystone species
Complexity
Holism
Relation to evolution
Behavioural ecology
Cognitive ecology
Social ecology
Coevolution
Biogeography
r/K selection theory
Molecular ecology
Human ecology
A dual discipline
Restoration Ecology
Relation to the environment
Disturbance and resilience
Metabolism and the early atmosphere
Radiation: heat, temperature and light
Physical environments
Water
Gravity
Pressure
Wind and turbulence
Fire
Soils
Biogeochemistry and climate
History
Early beginnings
Since 1900
See also
Notes
References
External links

Ecology is a branch of biology, and is the study of abundance, biomass, and distribution of organisms in the context of the environment. It encompasses life processes, interactions, and adaptations; movement of materials and energy through living communities; successional development of ecosystems; cooperation, competition, and predation within and between species; and patterns of biodiversity and its effect on ecosystem processes.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “ecology” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.