Arthropod: An animal with jointed appendages and no backbone. They usually have 2 to 3 distinctive body parts and are bilaterally symmetric. Examples include spiders, scorpions and ticks.

City zoning ordinances: Rules, usually determined by a city council, that specify how land can be used. For example, an area may be zoned for low-density residential use, which limits the number of houses that can be built per acre.

Community: In ecology, this term refers to populations of animals and plants that live within a defined area. For example, all the plants and animals that live in South Mountain Park would be a community.

Decomposer: An organism that consumes dead plant/animal material or waste products for sustenance.

Desert remnant: In CAP LTER projects, this is an undisturbed piece of native Sonoran Desert surrounded, or almost completely surrounded, by a city.

Diverse, diversity: The variety of plants and animals found within an area or ecosystem.

Ecology: The branch of biology that studies interactions among living things as well as interactions between living things and their physical environment.

Herbivore: An animal that eats plants.

Hypothesis: A statement, often written in an “if-then” format, that suggests a possible explanation for something and can be tested. An example would be, “If a plant gets a lot of sunlight, then it will grow better than a plant in the shade.

Land use: This describes the different purposes natural landscapes can be used for by people after settling in an area. Examples include residential, commercial, industrial, urban and agricultural land uses. 

• Agricultural: Land use category where natural surroundings have been converted to producing crops or raising domestic animals for food and other uses.
• Urban: Land use category where natural surroundings are used for development unrelated to agriculture. 
• Residential: Land use category where natural surroundings are converted into housing for people. Low density refers to 1-2 homes per acre of land, while high-density use has over 15 homes per acre.
• Commercial and industrial:  Land use category where natural surroundings are converted into spaces where people work. Some examples include shopping centers, hotels, motels, resorts, business parks and factories.
• Recreation: Land use category where natural surroundings have been altered for outdoor enjoyment; this includes spaces like parks or golf courses.

Larvae: The immature stage for some insects; often resembles a worm.  

Life cycle: The chronological sequence of events in an organism’s life, starting from the embryo stage, progressing through growth to reproduction. The cycle repeats with the next generation of organisms..

Natural phenomena: Occurrences without human input or intervention.

Parasites: An animal that lives on or inside another plant or animal, usually called a host. The parasite gets its food from the host organism.

Predators: An animal that captures and eats another animal.

Topography: The physical aspects and shape of a landscape, including features like flatness, hills and slopes.

Urbanization: the process of transforming natural landscapes or agricultural areas into cities.

Xeriscape: Landscape design, common in deserts and arid regions, that incorporates low-water plants and requires minimal irrigation and upkeep.