Glossary: Z

zacaton

A bunch grass habitat, mainly consisting of Epicampes, Festuca and Muhlenbergia, unique to central Mexico.

zoea larva

a larval form of crabs and other decapod crustaceans, characterized by one or more spines on the carapace and by rudimentary limbs on the abdomen and thorax.

zoogeography

The study of differences in animal distribution across geographic regions. Often integrates a variety of disciplines, such as ecology, physiology, phylogenetics, paleontology, geology and biogeography.

zooplankton

animal constituent of plankton; mainly small crustaceans and fish larvae. (Compare to phytoplankton.)

zope

Web application server built on top of an object database and the Python scripting language.

Application server that uses Acquisition Algebra to turn URL paths into traversed object calls (either via bobo__traverse methods or attribute lookups).

zygote

a cell formed by the fusion of two gametes, usually a sperm and egg cell. The zygote refers specifically to a fertilized egg before cleavage begins.