Editing Ecology (section)

=== Metapopulations and migration ===
{{Main|Metapopulation}}
{{See also|Animal migration}}
The concept of metapopulations was defined in 1969<ref name="Levins69"/> as "a population of populations which go extinct locally and recolonize".<ref name="Levins70"/>{{Rp|105}} Metapopulation ecology is another statistical approach that is often used in [[conservation biology|conservation research]].<ref name="Smith05"/> Metapopulation models simplify the landscape into patches of varying levels of quality,<ref name="Hanski98"/> and metapopulations are linked by the migratory behaviours of organisms. Animal migration is set apart from other kinds of movement because it involves the seasonal departure and return of individuals from a habitat.<ref name="Nebel10"/> Migration is also a population-level phenomenon, as with the migration routes followed by plants as they occupied northern post-glacial environments. Plant ecologists use pollen records that accumulate and stratify in wetlands to reconstruct the timing of plant migration and dispersal relative to historic and contemporary climates. These migration routes involved an expansion of the range as plant populations expanded from one area to another. There is a larger taxonomy of movement, such as commuting, foraging, territorial behavior, stasis, and ranging. Dispersal is usually distinguished from migration because it involves the one-way permanent movement of individuals from their birth population into another population.<ref name="Clark98"/><ref name="Dingle96"/>

In metapopulation terminology, migrating individuals are classed as emigrants (when they leave a region) or immigrants (when they enter a region), and sites are classed either as sources or sinks. A site is a generic term that refers to places where ecologists sample populations, such as ponds or defined sampling areas in a forest. Source patches are productive sites that generate a seasonal supply of [[Juvenile (organism)|juveniles]] that migrate to other patch locations. Sink patches are unproductive sites that only receive migrants; the population at the site will disappear unless rescued by an adjacent source patch or environmental conditions become more favorable. Metapopulation models examine patch dynamics over time to answer potential questions about spatial and demographic ecology. The ecology of metapopulations is a dynamic process of extinction and colonization. Small patches of lower quality (i.e., sinks) are maintained or rescued by a seasonal influx of new immigrants. A dynamic metapopulation structure evolves from year to year, where some patches are sinks in dry years and are sources when conditions are more favorable. Ecologists use a mixture of computer models and [[field study|field studies]] to explain metapopulation structure.<ref name="Hanski04"/><ref name="MacKenzie06"/>