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EAO
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Environmental Assessment Office (Canada).
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ecosystem
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A community of plants, animals, and other organisms that are linked by energy and nutrient flows and that interact with each other and with the physical environment. Rain forests, deserts, coral reefs, and grasslands are examples of ecosystems.
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ecosystem diversity
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The diversity of biological communities and their physical environments. Diversity is determined by the species composition, physical structure, and processes within an ecosystem. This is the highest level of biodiversity. See also biodiversity, genetic diversity, and species diversity.
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ecotoxicology
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The scientific study of harmful effects caused by manmade chemicals to the natural environment.
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EEZ
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Exclusive economic zone. All waters from the seaward boundary of coastal states (typically 3 nautical miles) out to 200 nautical miles.
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EFCL
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Electronic fish catch logbook.
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effluent
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Industrial or urban waste discharged into the environment.
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electrophoretic
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Of or relating to electrophoresis, which is a method of separating substances, especially proteins, and analyzing molecular structure based on the rate of movement of each component in a colloidal suspension while under the influence of an electric field.
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ELISA
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Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. A sensitive immunological test that uses an enzyme as a marker for the presence of a specific protein.
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endangered
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According to the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973, a species or ecosystem that is so reduced or delicate that it is threatened with or on the verge of extinction. See also ESA; compare threatened.
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endemic
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An animal or plant species that naturally occurs in only one area.
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energetics
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The study of the flow and transformation of energy.
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Environmental Conservation Division
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One of six divisions under the Science Director's Office of the Northwest Fisheries Science Center. See also NWFSC.
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EPA
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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epipelagic zone
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See photic zone.
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EPR
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Eggs-per-recruit. The average number of eggs produced by an individual fish that has been recruited, that is, moved into a certain class, such as the spawning class or fishing-size class. Used as an index of abundance.
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ERD
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Entity relationship diagram.
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ESA
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U.S. Endangered Species Act 1973. Its purpose is to "provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved." See also endangered and threatened.
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escapement
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The portion of an anadromous fish population that escapes commercial and recreational fisheries and reaches its freshwater spawning grounds.
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estuary
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An arm of the sea that extends inland to meet the mouth of a river.
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ESU
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Evolutionarily significant unit. A population segment (e.g., Redfish Lake sockeye) equivalent to the "distinct population" referred to in the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973.
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eutrophication
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Enrichment of a water body with nutrients, resulting in excessive growth of phytoplankton, seaweeds, or vascular plants, and often depletion of oxygen.
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evolution
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The process by which a species' structural and behavioral characteristics change over many generations, sometimes in response to changes in environmental conditions. New species develop in this way. For example, scientists believe that whales gradually evolved from land animals. See also convergent evolution and divergent evolution.
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