Question | Answer |
natural resource | anything in the environment that is used by people |
renewable resources | either always available or are naturally replaced in a relatively short time |
nonrenewable resources | natural resources that are not replaced in a useful time frame |
pollution | the contamination of earth's land, water, or air |
environmental species | the study of natural processes in the environment and how humans can affect them |
clear-cutting | the process of cutting down all the trees in an area at once |
selective cutting | cutting down only some trees in a forest and leaving a mix of tree species behind |
sustainable yield | an amount of a renewable resource such as trees that can be harvested with out reducing the future supply |
fishery | an area with a large population of valuable ocean organisms |
aquaculture | the practice of raising fish and other water dwelling organisms for food |
biodiversity | the number of different species in an area |
keystone species | a species that influences the survival of many other species in an ecosystem |
genes | the structures in an organisms cells that carry its hereditary information |
extinction | the disappearance of all members of a species from earth |
endangered species | species in danger of becoming extinct in the near future |
threatened species | species that could become endangered in the near future |
habitat destruction | the loss of natural habitat |
habitat fragmentation | breaking larger habitats into smaller, isolated pieces, or fragments |
poaching | the illegal killing or removal of wildlife from their habitats |
taxol | the substance that protects the Pacific yew tree |