| captive breeding |
| the propagation or preservation of animals outside their natural habitat (see ex-situ conservation), involving control by humans of the animals chosen to constitute a population and of mating choices within that population. [GBA] |
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| carrying capacity |
| the maximum number of people, or individuals of species, that a particular environment can sustain without environmental damage. [JVG] |
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| Cartagena Protocol |
| Protocol under CBD on matters of Biosafety, especially release of GMOs. |
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| centre of diversity |
| an area with a high number of species, which might be recognized on a global, regional or local scale. |
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| character |
| any recognizable trait, feature, or property of an organism. |
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| clear-cutting |
| the removal of the entire standing crop of trees. In practice, may refer to exploitation that leaves much unsaleable material standing (e.g. a commercial clear-cutting). [GBA] |
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| clearing-house |
| a service which facilitates and simplifies transactions among multiple parties such as sharing of information or technology. [JVG] |
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| clone |
| a set of genetically identical organisms, asexually reproduced from one ancestral organism or as a result of artificial propagation |
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| co-adaptation |
| evolution of characteristics of two or more species to their mutual advantage. |
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| co-evolution |
| evolution in two or more interacting species in which the evolutionary changes of each species influence the evolution of the other species. |
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| co-management |
| the sharing of authority, responsibility, and benefits between government and local communities in the management of natural resources. [GBA] |
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| coastal waters |
| marine benthic and pelagic ecosystems having substantial influence from the land. |
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| competition |
| use or defense of a resource by one individual that reduces the availability of the resource to other individuals. |
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| competitive exclusion |
| the extinction of one species by another species in the same area through competition. |
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| conservation |
| judicious use and management of nature and natural resources for the benefit of human society and for ethical reasons. [GBA] |
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| conservation biology |
| the science of conserving biological diversity. |
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| conservation of biodiversity |
| the management of human interactions with genes, species, and ecosystems so as to provide the maximum benefit to the present generation while maintaining their potential to meet the needs and aspirations of future generations; encompasses elements of saving, studying, and using biodiversity. [WRI et al.] |
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| control |
| suppression, containment or eradication of a pest population [FAO bis] |
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| coral bleaching |
| a phenomenon occurring when corals under stress expel their mutualistic microscopic algae, called zooxanthellae. This results in a severe decrease or even total loss of photosynthetic pigments. Since most reef building corals have white calcium carbonate skeletons, the latter show through the corals' tissue, and the coral reef appears bleached. [JVG] |
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| cross |
| the act or product of cross-fertilization between different individuals. [CUB] |
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| cross-breeding |
| the breeding of distinct and genotypic types or forms in plants. This may entail the transfer of pollen from one individual to the stigma of another of different genotype. [CUB] |
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| cross-pollination |
| the transfer of pollen from the stamen of a flower to the stigma of a flower of different genotype, but usually of the same species. [CUB] |
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| cultivar |
- a variety of a plant produced by selective breeding.
- a cultivated variety (genetic strain) of a domesticated crop plant.
- distinct form or variety of domesticated plant derived through breeding and selection and maintained through cultivation. [CUB] |
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| cultivated species |
| see: domesticated species. |
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| demography |
| the study of birth rates, death rates, age distributions, and size of populations. It is a fundamental discipline within the larger field of population biology and ecology. |
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| deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) |
- the molecule that controls inheritance.
- the molecule that generally encodes all genetic information. It consists of two strands or chains of sub-units, known as nucleotides. [CUB] |
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| detritus |
| a major food-source in a variety of ecosystems, consisting of organic remains of plants and animals, often heavily colonised by bacteria. |
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| dispersal |
| movement of organisms away from place of birth. |
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| DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) |
| the long chain of molecules in most cells that carries the genetic message and controls all cellular functions in most forms of life. [FAO] |
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| domestic biodiversity |
| the genetic variation existing among the species, breeds, cultivars and individuals of animal, plant and microbial species that have been domesticated, often including their immediate wild relatives. [GBA] |
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| domesticated species |
| species in which the evolutionary process has been influenced by humans to meet their needs (syn.: cultivated species). [CBD] |
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| domestication |
| the process by which plants, animals or microbes selected from the wild adapt to a special habitat created for them by humans. |
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