Wikipedia:WikiProject Ecoregions

Table of contents 1 Scope: 2 Goals 3 Related Wikiprojects 3.1 Parentage: 3.2 Sibling WikiProjects: 3.3 Descendant Wikiprojects: 4 Strategy: 5 Entry Naming 6 Formatting 7 Hierarchy definition 8 Participants 9 Lists of ecoregions 10 Defining 10.1 Ecological land classif 10.2 Ecozones 10.3 Biomes 10.4 Climates 10.5 Soils 11 Describing 12 Internal link 13 Links to French-language Wikipedia 14 External links

Scope: This WikiProject aims to organize all the 867 terrestrial ecoregions of the 8 major ecozones of Earth into a single and consistent naming scheme, and map the borders of these, and refer to these names in biology, ecology, physical geography and climate articles, replacing or augmenting nation-state names, which are inexact and don't reflect shifting borders.

Goals Some ideas of why it is important to geographically define ecoregions may be found at WikiProject Ecoregions : another way to see the World.

But in short, here is the idea. The ecoregions, as defined in Wikipedia, are initially based in those defined by WWF. However, the main goal for WWF was to work on conservation.
We believe thinking ecoregion instead of political geography (ie, borders between "regions" being defined by the political borders of nations) is a better way to solve some global issues.

So, thinking ecoregion is not only meant to think "biological conservation", it is another way to analyse and to represent areas in the world. At a scale fitting with human understanding, and fitting with human actions.

See also : WWF, ecoregion, Global 200 for further input.

Related Wikiprojects

Parentage:

None yet. A Wikipedia:WikiProject Terra[?] would be the obvious top-level project (as distinct from 'Earth' perhaps?), and Wikipedia:WikiProject Ecozones[?], a direct part of this Project.

Sibling WikiProjects:

(also under Terra/Earth) we need a Wikipedia:WikiProject Oceans[?] with descendant Wikipedia:WikiProject Rivers[?] is also advisable, as all rivers drain into oceans, and watersheds are an objective way to organize the flow of water worldwide. That is a parallel project to this.

Descendant Wikiprojects:

Wikipedia:WikiProject Amazon Rainforest[?], Wikipedia:WikiProject Sahara Desert[?], Wikipedia:WikiProject Australian Desert[?], Wikipedia:WikiProject Sumatran_Rainforest[?], etc., as these are interesting and expertise is recruited on each.

Strategy: Ecoregions aren't going away - ever, we hope (if they all go away, we die). They are the obvious and only objective way to organize physical geography and enable organization of ecology and climate data, including ranges of animals and plants. Right now there are weak stub articles at ecozones (listing), Nearctic, Neotropic, and etc..

We want to navigate logically from the entire planet Earth/Terra down into the ecozones and ecoregions, and their bordering rivers, seas, and oceans. Eventually a meta:Wikipediatlas will be part of the Wikipedia, as it is the Brittanica, etc., which includes a terrific Atlas, which we have to beat! The only way to do that is to organize in this state of the art way that isn't practical for paper, in general.

The obvious starting point is the Dymaxion Map of the Earth, which shows the continents floating in a world ocean, and makes the watersheds obvious. Superimposing the ecozones on that, and the subordinate rivers flowing to each ocean through them, and then the ecoregions on the surface, is the only objective way to break down the Earth's biosphere without cognizance of political boundaries or languages. Perhaps Latin names should be used for the rivers as they are for plants, animals, and ecozones - and some ecoregions which could be translated into Latin perhaps for this purpose. Translating the ecoregions and rivers into Latin isn't hard for those that have multiple names and were colonized by Europeans.

Then, all of ecology is using Latin as its basic language. If necessary English would be the alternate, for obvious reasons, or French, for its closeness to Latin and use as a global 'lingua franca' (literally). This should be decided early and in line with the practices of ecologists and biologists.

Entry Naming as per external link references in ecoregions

Formatting

Examples of fully documented ecoregions

Templates for this structure can be found at :PA1303

PA0906

Wikipedia:WikiProject_Ecoregions/Temp

An ecoregion entry includes:

• The ecozone it is contained within
• Any oceans or seas that it borders
• The rivers that flow through it
• Surface covered by the ecoregion
• A list of alternative names for the ecoregion in native languages, ideally those of the most aboriginal inhabitants, Latin, French, and English, and those official languages of any nations that intersect with it
• It's current best-known borders, in terms of the meta:spacetime DTD
• A precise definition for the ecoregion, containing links to the biological/botanic and climatic concepts that are involved in it;
• A list of links to any generalizations, categories of ecoregions that this one is an example of, e.g. "tropical"
• A list of links to the species of plants (botanical) that grow, in what types of soil, and links to these
• A list of links to native animals organized from top predator[?] down through lesser predators, then herbivore/prey[?] animals and plants they feed on.
• A list of links to non-native plants and animals introduced by humans, and a description of how they have impacted native ones
• Conservation status as defined by...
• A list of links to relevant Wikipedia articles, e.g. on the likely impact of climate change or sea level rise on the region - this should avoid the question of "whether the change will occur" and concentrate on what happens IF it occurs, only
  • The industries conducted in the region
  • The cultures of the region, comprehensive, with languages
  • The ecological challenges facing the region, e.g.

Sumatran rainforest, on orang-utan and ape extinction and deforestation:

A proposal to build an XML DTD for this purpose is at Wikipedia:WikiProject_Ecoregions/ecoregionDTD, which is necessarily dependent on the Wikipedia:WikiProject_Ecoregions/spacetime DTD.

Hierarchy definition Terra/Ecozone/River/Ecoregion/Predator/Prey/Plant/Soil

Participants

• This WikiProject was proposed by Earth, itself, fed up by itchy humans on its surface.
• Right. Earth ability is limited to do the job herself. And it fits very well in my biodiversity focus, so I'll help a bit User:anthere

Lists of ecoregions

• List of Australasia ecoregions
• List of Palearctic ecoregions
• List of Indomalaya ecoregions

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Defining

Ecological land classif

Ecological land classification

Ecozone -- Ecozone -- Ecoprovince[?] -- Ecoregion -- Ecodistrict[?] -- Ecosection[?] -- Ecosite[?] -- Ecoelement[?]

Ecozones

Ecozone : avec la liste complete et la description de chacune (chacune, lien vers la liste des pa contenue) - list defined

Nearctic -- Palearctic -- Afrotropic -- Indomalaya -- Australasia ecozone -- Neotropic -- Oceania -- Antarctic

Other names Australasia, Antarctica, Afrotropical, Indo-Malayan, Nearctical, Neotropical, Oceania, Paleartical

Biomes

biome

Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests

Tropical and Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests

Tropical and Subtropical Coniferous Forests

Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests (temperate, humid)

Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands

Temperate Coniferous Forests (temperate cold, humid)

Boreal Forests/Taiga (subartic, humid)

Temperate Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands (temperate, semi-arid)

Flooded Grasslands and Savannas

Montane Grasslands and Shrublands

Tundra (artic, humid)

Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands, and Shrub (temperate warm, humid)

Deserts and Xeric Shrublands

Mangrove

List of Deserts and Xeric Shrublands ecoregions[?]

Climates

climate types[?] Grand types climatiques mondiaux -- climate - no list defined, but many not necessary since already defined in biome - or with a very precise definition of climate

Soils

We could use the FAO classification, as it is a worldwide one, widely accepted and translated in many languages.

• Issue 1 : the main map is "fair use" : could we ask for it, might we just put a link to it ?
  
• Issue 2 : the main map is not precise enough 1:5000000, to easily find references of soil types for each ecoregion. There is another more precise map.
  

http://www.fao.org/ag/agl/agll/wrb/wrbmaps/htm/soilres.htm

soil - FAO soil classification -- http://www.fao.org/ag/agl/agll/wrb/wrbmaps/htm/soilres.htm

Acrisols[?]

- Andosols[?] - Anthrosols[?] (AT) - Arenosols[?] - Cambisols[?] - Chernozems[?] - Cryosols[?] (CR) - Durisols[?] (DU) - Ferralsols[?] - Fluvisols[?] - Gleysols[?] - Histosols[?] - Kastanozems[?] - Lithosols[?] - Luvisols[?] - Nitosols[?] - Phaeozems[?] - Planosols[?] - Podzols[?] - Albeluvisols[?] (AB) - Rankers[?] - Regosols[?] - Rendzinas[?] - Solonchaks[?] - Solonetz[?] - Umbrisols[?] (UM) - Vertisols[?] - Yermosols[?]

Describing

• Ecozone
• Biome
• Climate
• Soil
• Surface
• Oceans/rivers
• Natural ressources (presence of oil, coal, fish, woods, agricultural potential...)

• ecoregion versus political borders
• human cultures (language, religion...)
• use of land and ressources

• abuse, conflicts and threats (ecological damages, political issues relying on bordering issues, ressources appropriation...)

Note conservation

In global 200, list of ecoregions - no list

conservation status (need to established whose conservation status to use)

Note biodiversity and biosphere

During his history, and even tomorrow, because of demographic increase, man, animal species like the others, need and will have to find his food in his environment. The man thus puts in danger biodiversity to feed, either by direct predation of animal and plant species found in the environment, or by the destruction of natural habitats to cultivate and raise the species which he domesticated. Domestication has a significant impact on biodiversity. The man arranges his environment and pollutes it involuntarily. Town and country planning as well as pollution threaten the biodiversity and consequently the biosphere.

• predation
  • hunting
  • fishing
  • fruit gathering
• deforestation
• planning of humid areas, littorals, rivers
• sol degradation to desertification
• invasive species through domestication

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Internal link

• Biogeography

Links to French-language Wikipedia

• Région écologique (http://fr.wikipedia.org/w/wiki.phtml?title=R%E9gion_%E9cologique)
• Écozone (http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C9cozone)
• Écodistrict (http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C9codistrict)
• Classification écologique des terres (http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classification_%E9cologique_des_terres)

External links

• http://www.nationalgeographic.com/wildworld/terrestrial
• http://www.nearctica.com/ecology/habitats/biointro.htm