Ecophysiology

Physiology is the study of how organisms maintain a constant internal environment that is separate and distinct from the external environment. This internal environment, or internal ‘milieu’, facilitates the survival of the individual cells that comprise the organism. The challenges faced in maintaining the internal environment are dictated by the interactions between the organism and the biotic and abiotic factors of the external environment (i.e., ecology). Ecophysiology is the study of the complex relationship between an organism’s internal and external environments (Fig. 1). Ecophysiologists seek to (1) elucidate the mechanisms organisms use to respond to, and compensate for, specific external environmental pressures and (2) identify physiological mechanisms that represent adaptations to particular environments.