Biotope: Place or region of a habitat associated with particular ecological communities
Endemism: Taxon (specie, genus, etc.) whose geographical distribution is restricted to a certain area.
Stochastic: Random, a process of chance that is not submitted to any laws.
Hydro period: Flooding period.
Meta population: The sum of local populations occupying different spots of the habitat and which reproduce locally.
Sedimentary rocks: are types of rock that are formed by the deposition of material at the Earth's surface and within bodies of water. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause mineral and/or organic particles (detritus) to settle and accumulate or minerals to precipitate from a solution. Particles that form a sedimentary rock by accumulating are called sediment. Before being deposited, sediment was formed by weathering and erosion in a source area, and then transported to the place of deposition by water, wind, ice, mass movement or glaciers which are called agents of denudation.
Awn: A thin and long bristle found within some plants’ organs.
Bulb: The subterranean part of some plants, used as a nutrients storing organ.
Bract: A modified leaf located near the flowers or inflorescences.
Capitulum: A globose group of sessile flowers over a receptacle.
Sporangia: The organ that produces and contains the spores of cryptogamic plants.
Spores: Cells, or groups of cells, specialized for the reproduction and dispersion of cryptogamic plants.
Phyllopodium: Modified leafs shaped as rigid scales that form shiny black hooks.
Glomerule: A group of clustered flowers with a more or less globose shape.
Inflorescences: Group of flowers within the same stalk (peduncle).
Node: A point of the stalk where other organs are found such as leafs or flowers.
Annual plant: A plant whose life cycle is inferior to one year.
Herbaceous plant: A plant that does not have any woody part.
Perennial plant: A plant whose life cycle is superior to one year.
Petals: are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators.
Rhizome: A subterranean stalk covered with scales, which looks like a root.
Sepals: The outermost whorl of floral leaves.
Sessile: Every short organ that is inserted by the base and does not have any support axis.
Tepals: The floral leafs around the reproductive parts of the flower, when there is no clear distinction of size, shape or colour between petals and sepals.
Umbel: An umbrella shaped inflorescence where the pedicels of the flowers have the same size and are all inserted at the end of the stalk.
Vascular plants: known as higher plants, are form a large group of plants that are defined as land plants that have lignified tissues for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They also have a specialized non-lignified tissue to conduct products of photosynthesis.
Verticillate: A circular disposition of similar organs (ex: leafs or flowers) around a stalk node.
Amplexus: kind of hug between male and female during mating.
Bridal callosities: adherent protuberances existing in certain areas of the trunk and anterior paws of amphibian males that facilitate the amplexus.
Cloaca: opening to the exterior of the urinary and genital ducts in amphibians and reptiles
Glandular pores: orifices that communicate with glandular cells. Present on the skin of amphibians and on the plates of turtles.
Inguinal: name given the region that lies between the hind limbs and the trunk in the ventral zone.
Interdigital membranes: extensions of skin that connect the fingers to each other.
Parotids (glands): thicker areas of skin due to accumulation of cells secreting toxic substances. They are present in the lateral regions of the head of numerous amphibians species.
Metatarsal tubercle: Protuberance or protrusion of the skin in the 5th finger in the hind legs.
Spermatophore: capsular structure released by the males of urodel amphibians (caudata), where the sperm accumulate and are transported to the female organs.
Tympanum: is an external hearing structure in animals such as frogs, toads, insects, and mammals, to name a few.
Cysts: 'Eggs’ / embryos resistant to desiccation.
Ovisac: A capsule caused by the modification of a thoracopod, where the female keeps the cysts.
Valve: One of the parts a two-leaf shell.