A-B / C-D / E-F / G-H / I-J / K-L / M-N / O-P / Q-R / S-T / U-V / W-X / Y-Z
A-B
Adaptation
A change or the process of change by which a living organism or species becomes better suited to its environment.
Adaptive management (AM), aka: Adaptive Resource Management (ARM) or Adaptive Environmental Assessment and Management (AEAM)
A structured, iterative process of robust decision making in the face of uncertainty, with an aim to reducing uncertainty over time via system monitoring. In this way, decision making simultaneously meets one or more resource management objectives and, either passively or actively, accrues information needed to improve future management. Adaptive management is a tool which should be used not only to change a system, but also to learn about the system.
Holling, C.S. (1978). Adaptive Environmental Assessment and Management. John Wiley & Sons.
Pitfalls of applying adaptive management to a wolf population in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario; JB Theberge, MT Theberge, JA Vucetich… – Environmental …, 2006 – Springe
Admixture (Genetic)
Genetic admixture occurs when two or more previously isolated and genetically differentiated populations begin interbreeding. Admixture results in the introduction of new genetic lineages into a population. It has been known to slow local adaptation by introducing foreign, unadapted genotypes (known as genetic pollution). It also prevents speciation by homogenizing populations and increasing heterozygosity. [Courtesy of]
Adrenocorticotropin Hormone
Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) is a hormone produced in the anterior, or front, pituitary gland in the brain. The function of ACTH is to regulate levels of the steroid hormone cortisol, which released from the adrenal gland.
Active Solicitation
Also called “proceptivity.” In the Proestrous stage of breeding wolves, female wolves show behaviors towards a mate in the form of prancing, body rubs and pawing, nuzzling or putting her chin on her mate’s back. As well as presenting her rear to her mate’s nose.
Active Submission
In active submission, the submissive animal approaches another wolf in a low posture, slightly crouched, ears back and close to its head, and tail held low. The submissive wolf wags its tail or hindquarters and attempts to lick or mouth the other wolf’s muzzle. Active submission occurs curs often in “greeting,” during “group ceremonies” in which dominant wolves become the focus of nuzzling, licking, and mouthing about the face by other members of the pack, and as a “nose-push” given by submissive animals toward dominant ones when they are still a few meters away.
L. David Mech;Luigi Boitani. Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation (p. 93). Kindle Edition.
Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds, or African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA)
An intergovernmental treaty dedicated to the conservation of migratory waterbirds and their habitats across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, Greenland and the Canadian Archipelago.
The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds
Allee Effect
A phenomenon in biology characterized by a correlation between population size or density and the mean individual fitness (often measured as per capita population growth rate) of a population or species
Courchamp F, Berec J, Gascoigne J (2008). Allee effects in ecology and conservation. Oxford, New York, USA: Oxford University Press.
[HTML] Demographic and component Allee effects in southern Lake Superior gray wolves; JL Stenglein, TR Van Deelen – PloS one, 2016 – journals.plos.org
Allochthonous
Denoting sediment or rock that originated at a distance from its present position.
Alphas
The term sometimes used to describe the dominant wolves in the social order of the wolf pack. Because a free-ranging wolf pack is a family comprising the parents and their offspring, the term “alphas” has been superseded by “breeding pair” or “breeders” or simply “parents.”
Alluvial fan Triangular-shaped deposits of water-transported material, often referred to as alluvium. They are an example of an unconsolidated sedimentary deposit and tend to be larger and more prominent in arid to semi-arid regions. These alluvial fans typically form in elevated or even mountainous regions where there is a rapid change in slope from a high to low gradient.
“At 1230 hr, seven wolves were attacking a band of about 25 sheep on an alluvial fan. About three wolves, including 217, actually were in with the sheep, and I thought that the wolves would easily catch one.”
Mech, L. David; Smith, Douglas W.; MacNulty, Daniel R.. Wolves on the Hunt (Kindle Locations 3325-3327). University of Chicago Press. Kindle Edition.
Anadromous
Term that describes fish born in freshwater who spend most of their lives in saltwater and return to freshwater to spawn, such as salmon and some species of sturgeon. NOAA Fisheries has jurisdiction over most marine and anadromous fish listed under the Endangered Species Act.
Annual Growth Rate
Percent growth every year in a population. The annual percentage growth rate is simply the percent growth divided by N, the number of years.
Anthropocentrism
Philosophical viewpoint arguing that human beings are the central or most significant entities in the world. Anthropocentrism regards humans as separate from and superior to nature and holds that human life has intrinsic value while other entities (including animals, plants, mineral resources, and so on) are resources that may justifiably be exploited for the benefit of humankind.
Aristotle (Politics, Bk. 1, Ch. 8) maintains that “nature has made all things specifically for the sake of man” and that the value of non-human things in nature is merely instrumental.
Arctic Oscillation
A large scale mode of climate variability, also referred to as the Northern Hemisphere annular mode. The AO is a climate pattern characterized by winds circulating counterclockwise around the Arctic at around 55°N latitude. When the AO is in its positive phase, a ring of strong winds circulating around the North Pole acts to confine colder air across polar regions. This belt of winds becomes weaker and more distorted in the negative phase of the AO, which allows an easier southward penetration of colder, arctic air masses and increased storminess into the mid-latitudes. [NOAA]
Atricial
Hatched or born in an undeveloped state and requiring care and feeding by the parents. The word is derived from the Latin root alere, meaning “to nurse, to rear, or to nourish” and indicates the need for young to be fed and taken care of for a long duration.
Atmospheric Attenuation
The reduction with distance from the source of the intensity of an acoustic or an electromagnetic signal propagating through the atmosphere caused by interaction of the signal with gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, aerosols, or hydrometeors. In general, scattering and absorption account for attenuation.
For sound, absorption is usually more important than scattering; it depends on temperature and humidity, and generally increases with increasing acoustic frequency. The main atmospheric constituents that absorb radar energy are oxygen, water vapor, and liquid hydrometeors. Absorption is often neglected at wavelengths of 10 cm and longer, but becomes increasingly important at shorter wavelengths. The contribution of scattering to radar attenuation also increases with decreasing wavelength.
AMS Meteorology Glossary
AZA (American Zoo and Aquarium Association)
[Mexican Gray Wolves]
An association of zoological parks and aquariums in North America that governs over 100 facilities and oversees the governance of the SSP’s and other captive breeding programs.
AZGFD (Arizona Game and Fish Department)
[Mexican Gray Wolves]
One of the state agencies that participates in the management of the Mexican gray wolf in the recovery area.
Barents Region
The Barents Region consists of northernmost parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and North-West Russia. Sometimes the area is also referred to as the Euro-Arctic Region. The geographical area covers 1,75 million km² of which about 75% is located in Russia. The Barents region has over five million inhabitants, including several indigenous peoples: Sami in all the four Barents countries, and Nenets and Veps on the Russian side.
Barents Euro-Arctic Cooperation
Bayesian Statistics
A theory in the field of statistics based on the Bayesian interpretation of probability where probability expresses a degree of belief in an event, which can change as new information is gathered, rather than a fixed value based upon frequency or propensity.
Biocentrism
An ethical perspective holding that all life deserves equal consideration or has equal moral standing.
Biological Signal Field
Of mammals (BSF) is “a total sum of mammals influence on the environment, changing its structure” (Naumov, 1977).
The Role of Anthropogenic Influence on Biological Signal Field (BSF) Characteristics of the Wolf, Canis lupus lupus (Canidae, Carnivora). Shkvyria MG, Yakovlev YB. Vestnik zoologii. 2016 Feb
BRWRA (Blue Range Wolf Recovery Area)
[Mexican Gray Wolves]
This includes all of the Apache National Forest and all of the Gila National Forest. This area includes over 4 million acres of mountain,s forests, and grasslands within the historic Mexican wolf range in the U.S.
Bounty
A payment or other reward for removing or killing certain species of animals designated as harmful. Federal and state governments have used bounties as part of their predator control programs to encourage people to kill wolves.
Breeding Pair
The term used to refer to the male and the female in the pack who mate and produce offspring.
The effects of breeder loss on wolves; SM Brainerd, H Andrén, EE Bangs… – The Journal of …, 2008 – Wiley Online Library
Buffer Zone
An area between territories occupied by established wolf packs. Prey species often flourish in buffer zones. Wolves that have dispersed and that are alone often find relative safety and food in buffer zones with less risk of being attacked and killed by members of established packs. However, buffer zones are not necessarily neutral areas and therefore safe havens. These zones may be contested by resident packs.