SYNECOLOGY

also called Biocenology, Biosociology, or Community Ecology, study of a group or community of organisms and their relationships to each other and to their common environment. Synecological concepts, such as those dealing with nutrient cycling and energy budgets, are based on descriptive analysis of the community. This subdivision of ecology can be further separated according to environmental types, such as terrestrial and aquatic, which themselves can be subdivided into such areas as forest, grassland, desert, and stream or lake environments. Synecology is becoming more experimental as techniques and equipment are developed to measure variables such as the uptake and transport of materials in nutrient cycles and the transformations and exchanges involved in energy relationships. Compare autecology.