Environmental gradient

Environmental gradients can be related to factors such as altitude, depth, temperature, soil humidity and precipitation.

Often times, a multitude of biotic (living) factors are closely related to these gradients; as a result of a change in an environmental gradient, factors such as species abundance, population density, morphology, primary productivity, predation, and local adaptation may be impacted.

[6] Often times when comparing fitness or phenotypic values across an environmental gradient, the data are fixated into a reaction norm framework.

Similarly, rate of precipitation has a positive correlation with respiration (as moisture no longer becomes a limiting factor).

[10] Altitude gradients are a key consideration in understanding migration patterns due to the effects of global warming.

Air pollution is present as an environmental gradient in areas containing power plants, factories, and other pollutant-emitting facilities, as are environmental toxins, such as heavy metals, radiation, and pesticides; generally speaking, concentration decreases as distance from origin site increases.