Concepts

Chemical composition of plant litter that determines its decomposability, typically characterized by C:N ratios and lignin content

Areas of transition between adjacent, distinct ecosystems with unique species assemblages at the fringes of mature stands

Statistical inference procedure that selects flattest probability distributions compatible with constraints imposed by prior knowledge

Distribution of metabolic rates over individuals in a community, obtained by summing over abundance

Reduction in population growth rates, size, or occurrence across species ranges

A quantitative measure of uncertainty about an outcome of a draw from a probability distribution

Assumption that spatial differences in environmental conditions can predict temporal responses to environmental change

Species best suited for the environment that make up most of the vegetation in early successional stages

Model developed to determine LARs based on SAR and simple properties of food webs including species richness, number of links and connectance

A statistical distribution commonly observed in species abundance patterns, predicted by METE for undisturbed communities

A series of sites of different ages since disturbance used to infer temporal changes in ecological processes

Loss of cellular electrolytes through compromised cell membranes, used as indicator of heat stress damage

The principle asserting an inverse relationship between local population density and average metabolic rate of individuals in a species

Species that define ecosystems and provide critical habitat structure, where big sagebrush is a foundation species in steppe ecosystems of western North America

Ability of plants to survive exposure to elevated temperatures, measured as lethal temperature causing 50% electrolyte leakage (LT50)

The movement of eroded soil and rock particles by water flow

Overland flow that occurs when rainfall intensity exceeds the rate at which water can enter the soil

Distinct layers in soil profile with different physical and chemical properties

The rate at which temperature decreases with elevation, typically expressed as degrees Celsius per kilometer

Extrapolation of species richness estimates from small plots to larger spatial scales using theoretical scaling relationships