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Important ecological areas (IEAs) are habitat areas which, either by themselves or in a network, contribute significantly to an ecosystem’s productivity, biodiversity, and resilience. Appropriate management of key ecological features delineates the management boundaries of an IEA. The identification and protection of IEAs is an element of an ecosystem-based management approach.
In ecology, a habitat is the type of natural environment in which a particular species of organism lives. It is characterized by both physical and biological features. A species' habitat is those places where it can find food, shelter, protection and mates for reproduction.
An ecosystem is a community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment, interacting as a system. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the system through photosynthesis and is incorporated into plant tissue. By feeding on plants and on one-another, animals play an important role in the movement of matter and energy through the system. They also influence the quantity of plant and microbial biomass present. By breaking down dead organic matter, decomposers release carbon back to the atmosphere and facilitate nutrient cycling by converting nutrients stored in dead biomass back to a form that can be readily used by plants and other microbes.
Biodiversity refers to the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is typically a measure of variation at the genetic, species, and ecosystem level. Terrestrial biodiversity is usually greater near the equator, which is the result of the warm climate and high primary productivity. Biodiversity is not distributed evenly on Earth, and is richest in the tropics. These tropical forest ecosystems cover less than 10 percent of earth's surface, and contain about 90 percent of the world's species. Marine biodiversity is usually highest along coasts in the Western Pacific, where sea surface temperature is highest, and in the mid-latitudinal band in all oceans. There are latitudinal gradients in species diversity. Biodiversity generally tends to cluster in hotspots, and has been increasing through time, but will be likely to slow in the future.
Important ecological areas may have varying levels of management of extractive activities, from monitoring up to and including marine reserve. IEAs have management measures tailored to the ecological features within the area with consideration of socioeconomic factors. Whereas marine reserves generally have a fixed management policy of no extraction or ‘no-take’. Nonetheless, a marine reserve may be the appropriate management policy for an IEA.
A marine reserve is a type of marine protected area that has legal protection against fishing or development. As of 2007 less than 1% of the world's oceans had been set aside in marine reserves. Benefits include increases in the diversity, density, biomass, body size and reproductive potential of fishery and other species within their boundaries.
The identification and management of IEAs is a form of ocean zoning. In the event that there are a series of linked IEAs within a large marine ecosystem, a collective action to manage the network, such as a marine sanctuary or national monument, may be warranted.
Ocean zoning is a policy approach for environmental resource management in oceanic environments. This, often big picture, approach to ocean management allocates areas for various ocean uses. Types of zones can include areas designated for marine protected areas, aquaculture, various types of fishing, shipping, recreation, mooring/anchoring, and energy production. The process of marine spatial planning can result in ocean zones being legally established.
A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of national importance such as the country's founding, independence or a war.
Examples are tropical rainforests, oceans, forests, etc.
Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as lowland equatorial evergreen rainforest. True rainforests are typically found between 10 degrees north and south of the equator ; they are a sub-set of the tropical forest biome that occurs roughly within the 28 degree latitudes. Within the World Wildlife Fund's biome classification, tropical rainforests are a type of tropical moist broadleaf forest that also includes the more extensive seasonal tropical forests.
A forest is a large area dominated by trees. Hundreds of more precise definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing and ecological function. According to the widely used Food and Agriculture Organization definition, forests covered 4 billion hectares (9.9×109 acres) (15 million square miles) or approximately 30 percent of the world's land area in 2006.
