Ecological competence is a term that has several different meanings that are dependent on the context it is used. The term "Ecological competence" can be used in a
microbial sense, and it can be used in a
sociological
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...
sense.
Microbiology
Ecological competence is the ability of an
organism
In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and ...
, often a
pathogen
In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ ...
, to survive and compete in new habitats. In the case of plant pathogens, it is also their ability to survive between growing seasons. For example,
peanut clump virus can survive in the spores of its fungal
vector
Vector most often refers to:
*Euclidean vector, a quantity with a magnitude and a direction
*Vector (epidemiology), an agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen into another living organism
Vector may also refer to:
Mathematic ...
until a new growing season begins and it can proceed to infect its primary host again. If a pathogen does not have ecological competence it is likely to become extinct.
Bacteria
Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometr ...
and other
pathogens
In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a ger ...
can increase their ecological competence by creating a micro-
niche
Niche may refer to:
Science
*Developmental niche, a concept for understanding the cultural context of child development
*Ecological niche, a term describing the relational position of an organism's species
*Niche differentiation, in ecology, the ...
, or a highly specialized environment that only they can survive in. This in turn will increase
plasmid stability.
[McLoughlin, A. J. (1994)]
Controlled release of immobilized cells as a strategy to regulate ecological competence of inocula
In ''Biotechnics/wastewater'' (pp. 1-45). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. Increased plasmid stability leads to a higher ecological competence due to added spatial organization and regulated cell protection.
Sociology
Ecological competence in a sociological sense is based around the relationship that humans have formed with the environment. It is often important in certain careers that will have a drastic impact on the surrounding
ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
.
[Perfilova, O., & Alizade, Y. (2011)]
The role of ecological competence in manager's professional education
''Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences'', ''15'', 2293-2298. A specific example is engineers working around and planning mining operations, due to the possible negative effects it can have on the surrounding environment.
[Hryshchenko, S., & Morkun, V. (2015)]
Using gis-technology in role-play as an effective means of ecological competence formation among the future engineers
''Metallurgical and Mining Industry'', ''4'', 139-142. Ecological competence is especially important at the managerial level so that managers may understand society's risk to nature. These risks are learned through specific ecological knowledge so that the environment can be better protected in the future.
See also
*
Cultural ecology
Cultural ecology is the study of human adaptations to social and physical environments. Human adaptation refers to both biological and cultural processes that enable a population to survive and reproduce within a given or changing environment. Thi ...
*
Environmental education
Environmental education (EE) refers to organized efforts to teach how natural environments function, and particularly, how human beings can manage behavior and ecosystems to live sustainably. It is a multi-disciplinary field integrating discip ...
*
Sustainable development
*
Ecological relationship
References
{{Reflist
Ecology