ECOLOGY
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1004 ▶ |
| Object type | General information |
The science of interactions of living systems among themselves and with their environment.
Already in 1866, E. HAECKEL defined ecology as the global science of the organisms relations with their surrounding world, in which he included generally all the conditions of their existence.
Later on, scientists like A. LOTKA (1924, 1956) and V. VOLTERRA (1931) studied more restricted phenomena as, for example the interrelations of two or three species. Others considered mainly lesser biotopes: a meadow, a small island, a wood.
However, more recently, HAECKEL's programme has been retrieved as it becomes ever more obvious that these restricted inquiries should be put into the perspective of a much more global understanding.
The French ecologist F. RAMADE writes: “Ecology studies complex systems; its approach is thus, ipso facto, of a holistic nature. Its object is at the summit of the organizational ladder of living systems: The simplest biological entity of its concern is the population. Furthermore and by order of growing complexity, its objects of study are colonies, living communities, ecosystems and biosphere as a whole” (1993, p.424).
Ecology is thus a typically systemic science.