| parasite |
- an organism that consumes part of the tissues of its host, usually without killing the host.
- an organism which lives on or in another organism, feeding upon it. [FAO bis] |
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| parataxonomist |
| field-trained biodiversity collection and inventory specialist recruited from local areas. |
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| patent |
| a government grant of temporary monopoly rights on innovative processes or products. |
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| pathogen |
| a disease-causing micro-organism; a bacterium, fungus or virus. |
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| pelagic |
- living in the water column. (Opposite: benthic).
- free-swimming (nektonic) or floating (planktonic) organisms that live exclusively in the water column, not on the bottom. |
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| pest |
| any species, strain or biotype of plant, animal or pathogenic agent injurious to plants or other organisms and/or their products. [JVG] |
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| phenotype |
- the observed traits of an organism, resulting from an interaction of its genotype and its environment.
- the characteristics of an organism that result from the interaction of its genetic constitution with the environment. [CUB] |
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| pheromone |
- a volatile hormone or behaviour-modifying agent. Normally used to describe sex attractants -for example bombesin for the moth Bombyx- but includes volatile aggression-stimulating agents (e.g. isoamyl acetate in honey bees). [CUB]
- a hormone-like substance secreted into the environment by certain animals, especially insects. [CUB] |
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| photosynthesis |
| chemical reactions in plants and plant-like organisms whereby the sun's energy is absorbed by the green pigment chlorophyll, permitting carbon dioxide and water to be synthesized into carbohydrates accompanied by the release of water and oxygen. |
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| phyletic evolution |
| genetic changes that occur within an evolutionary line. |
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| phylogenetic |
| pertaining to the evolutionary history of a particular group of organisms. |
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| phylogeny |
| history or evolutionary development of any plant or animal species. |
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| phylum |
| in taxonomy and systematics, the highest level of classification below the kingdom. For instance, Mollusca (slugs, snails, clams, squids, etc.) constitute a phylum. [JVG] |
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| phytomedicine |
| medicinal products based on standardised active ingredients within a herbal base. This term is sometimes used more broadly to include all plant-based medicines. [CUB] |
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| plankton |
- floating, drifting or slowly swimming organisms that cannot swim against currents.
- floating and drifting organisms that have limited swimming abilities and that are carried largely passively with water currents (opp. nekton). These include bacteria (bacterioplankton), plants and plant-like organisms (phytoplankton) and the animals (zooplankton) that eat them. |
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| Pleistocene |
| the span of geological time preceding the Recent epochs, during which the human species evolved. It began 2.5 million years ago and ceased with the end of the last Ice Age 10.000 years ago. |
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| pollination |
- the transfer of pollen from an anther to the stigma in angiosperms, or from the microsporangium to the micropyle in gymnosperms.
- pollination happens when pollen lands on a female part of a flower such as the stigma of a carpel. Pollination can be caused by pollinators such as butterflies, bees, birds, bats but also by the wind or the water. |
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| pollinator |
| a pollinator is an agent, generally an animal (insect, bird, bat, etc.) that carries pollen to the female part of a flower. |
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| population |
| a group of individuals with common ancestry that are much more likely to mate with one another than with individuals from another such group |
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| population viability analysis |
| a comprehensive analysis of the many environmental and demographic factors that affect survival of a population, usually small. |
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| precautionary principle |
- (= do-no-harm principle) a proactive method of dealing with the environment that places the burden of proof on those whose activities could harm the environment. (Opposite: wait-and-see principle)
- if the costs of current activities are uncertain, but are potentially both high and irreversible, the precautionary principle holds that society should take action before the uncertainty is resolved. [GBA] |
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| predator |
- an animal that kills and eats animals.
- a natural enemy that preys and feeds on other animal organisms, mor than one of which are killed during its lifetime [FAO bis] |
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| primary forest |
| a forest largely undisturbed by human activities. (Also: natural forest; opp. secondary forest.) |
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| primary production |
| amount of organic material synthesised by organisms from inorganic substrata in a given area in a given period. |
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| primary productivity |
| the transformation of chemical or solar energy to biomass. Most primary production occurs through photosynthesis, whereby green plants convert solar energy, carbon dioxide, and water to glucose and eventually to plant tissue. In addition, some bacteria in the deep sea can convert chemical energy to biomass through chemosynthesis. [UNEP] |
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| prior informed consent (PIC) |
| the principle that international shipment of a pesticide that is banned or severely restricted in order to protect human health or the environment should not proceed without agreement, where such agreement exists, or contrary to the decision of the designated national authority in the participating importing country. [BSWG/2/5: FAO International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides] |
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| private opportunity cost |
| the opportunity cost faced by an individual agent of using a resource (not including any externalities.) [GBA] |
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| protected area |
- a legally established land or water area under either public or private ownership that is regulated and managed to achieve specific conservation objectives. [GBA]
- a geographically defined area which is designated or regulated and managed to achieve specific conservation objectives. [CUB] |
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| protein |
| any of a class of nitrogenous compounds forming an essential part of living organisms and having large molecules consisting of one or more chains of amino acids linked together. [CUB] |
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| protocol |
| a protocol is linked to an existing convention, but it is a separate and additional agreement that must be signed and ratified by the Parties to the convention. Protocols typically expand or strengthen a convention by adding new or more detailed commitments. [JVG] |
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