| A | B |
|---|
| absolute location | on a map or globe, expressed as the intersection of lines of latitude and longitude. |
| adapt | gradual change in response to environmental conditions. |
| adaptation | feature of an organism that enhances survival and reproductive success. |
| archipelago | a group of islands sharing common physical and location characteristics. |
| biodiversity | biological diversity in an environment as indicated by numbers of different species of plants and animals. |
| competition | rivalry between organisms for food, shelter, or control of a territory. Competition occurs both within the same species and among different species. |
| coordinates | the latitude and longitude numbers that express location (in degrees north or south and east or west) as a point on a map or globe. |
| current | the part of a fluid body moving continuously in a single direction. |
| ecosystem | a community of plants and animals that function as an interrelated unit in nature. |
| elevation | in maps, the altitude above sea level. Elevation provides a more objective measurement than height, which is altitude above the surrounding area. |
| endemic species | native to a region; not introduced or merely resident. |
| equator | an imaginary circle around the middle of the earth halfway between the North and South Poles, at 0 degrees Latitude. |
| evolution | change in lineages of populations between generations. |
| fault | a fracture in the crust of the Earth along which movement can be determined. |
| germination | the development of a sprout or young plant from a seed that has been moistened. |
| habitat | the environmental conditions of the place in which an organism lives. |
| humboldt current | aka Peru Coastal Current, cold-water current that flows counter-clockwise in the southern Pacific, going north along the west coast of South America to the Galapagos |
| hypothesis | a trial solution suggested for a scientific problem, subject to testing. |
| island | a tract of land completely surrounded by water. |
| journal | a tract of land completely surrounded by water. |
| latitude | the angular distance (in degrees) north and south of the equator. |
| lava tubes | a cave or tunnel formed when the lava flow surface cools, forms a crust, and the molten interior continues to flow. |
| longitude | the angular distance (in degrees) east and west of the prime meridian. |
| Natural Selection | process by which individuals in a population that are best adapted to the environment increase in number relative to less well-adapted forms, over a number of generations. |
| niche | the ecological role of an organism in a community especially in regard to food consumption. |
| Panama Current | warm-water current that flows from Central America to the Galápagos. |
| Plate Techtonics | the concept that the Earth’s surface is broken into large, rigid plates that move slowly but relentlessly, relative to each other, experiencing major unrest at their margins. |
| population | a group of individuals of the same species that occupy the same geographic region, interbreed, and produce viable offspring. |
| prevailing | something that is in effect most often at the present time. |
| Prime Meridian | an imaginary line that runs from the North Pole to the South Pole and is known as zero longitude. |
| relative location | the comparison of one location to another in terms of a reference point or an area. |
| scale | the ratio between map distance and real Earth distance; for example, 1 centimeter represents 1 kilometer, or 1 inch represents 1 mile. Scale will vary from map to map. |
| South Easterlies | winds that move air from the southeast toward the northwest, south of the equator. |
| South Equatorial Current | equatorial current that flows westerly along and south of the Equator |
| species | a population of similar organisms that are capable of interbreeding (in the wild) and producing viable offspring, but do not interbreed with any other populations. |
| theory | a hypothesis that relates and organizes much of the knowledge in a science and has been tested with success many times, until it has been accepted. |
| trade wind | a wind blowing almost constantly in one direction, either south (called Easterlies) or north (called Westerlies) of the equator. |
| undercurrent | a current that flows under other currents, usually in a different direction. |
| upwelling | the flow of cold, deep water to the surface of a water body. This cold, nutrient-rich, upwelled water supports an abundance of sea life. |
| Naturalist | a person who studies natural objects and organisms along with their evolution, origins, description, and interrelationships |
| adaptation | a characteristic that improvves an individual's ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment |
| species | a group of organisms that are closely related and can mate to produce fertile offspring |
| fossil | the trace or remains of an organism that lived long ago, most commonly preserved in sedimentary rock |
| fossil record | a historical sequence of life indicated by fossils found in layers of the Earth's crust |
| evolution | the process in which inherited characteristics within a population change over generations such that new species sometimes arise |
| trait | a genetically determined characteristic |
| selective breeding | the human practice of breeding animals or plants that have certain desired traits |
| natural selection | the process by which individuals that are better adapted to their enviornment survive and reproduce more successfully than less well adapted individuals do; a theory to explain the mechanism of evolution |
| generation time | the period between the birth of one generation and the birth of the next generation |
| speciation | the formation of new species as a result of evolution |
