In nature, many species live the same habitat but perform different functions. A “niche” describes the functional characteristics of a species in its habitat. While a species’ habitat is like its ‘address’ (i.e. where it lives), the niche can be thought of as its ‘occupation’ (i.e. species-specific activities and responses). An ecological niche is a
Conservation strategies are often directed to individual species or for habitats identified as species-rich and therefore tend to assume that most individuals of a particular species have been assigned correctly. Many biologists argue that identifying species is far from straightforward. The biological species concept (BSC), defines species as “…groups of actual or potential interbreeding natural
A recently established taxonomy approach attempts to identify species solely on the basis of a genetic barcode (also called a DNA barcode) consisting of one or a few DNA sequences. For example, a 648 bp region of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene continues to be developed as a barcode identifier in animals.
When Benjamin Franklin was postmaster in the US colonies in his day, all letters and postal packages were transported across continents by ships and boats. He received numerous complaints in 1769 about the fact that mail ships from North America en route to Europe arrived much faster than the mail ship going in the opposite
The seas and oceans are dynamic ecosystems. The oceans are very large bodies of water that form an important part of the hydrosphere. Wind blowing across the sea surface has the greatest influence on the movement of surface waters. Sunlight falling on the sea surface has a very significant impact on seawater temperature. These factors
There are different levels of organization in living systems, from molecules like DNA (genes) to the entire biosphere. When it comes to biology levels of organization they start from: genes → cell → organ → organism → species population → community → ecosystem → biome → biosphere Living beings are extremely organized and structured, following
Sometimes science seems like something that takes place in a laboratory away from everyday life. It may be, but the impact of ‘s scientific research is having a tremendous impact on your daily life, from the food you eat the energy that powers your home. Here are some of the ways that biology affects your
What Is A Cell Biology? Cell biology is the examination of cellular structure and function and revolves around the concept that the cell is the basic unit of life. In the 1830s, two scientists, Schleiden, who studied plant cells and Schwann, who first studied animal cells, provided, the first clearly established definition of cell is
Not all scientists agree on what life is all about. There are several features that describe most living things. However, for most of the features listed below, we can think of one or more examples that might break the rule by classifying something that doesn’t live as alive or something that lives as non-living. Hence,
In addition to the presence of chloroplasts, another major difference between plant and animal cells is the presence of a cell wall that surrounds the plasma membrane of plant cells and provides tensile strength and protection against mechanical and osmotic stress, and also allows cells to develop turgor pressure, which is the pressure of the
