Animal Info - Glossary R

Race: An interbreeding group of individuals all of whom are genetically distinct from the members of other such groups of the same species. Usually these groups are geographically isolated from each another. (Allaby 1991)
Radio Collar: A collar containing a battery-powered, fixed-frequency radio transmitter. An observer can track the location of a radio-collared animal using a radio receiver tuned to the collar's frequency and a directional antenna. Some radio collars can transmit additional information; e.g., whether the animal is resting or moving.
Radio-tracking: An observational technique used in field studies of animal behavior, in which the animal is fitted with a battery-powered, fixed-frequency radio transmitter, usually attached to a collar, and the observer is equipped with a receiver and directional antenna. (Allaby 1991).
Range: The geographical area over which an animal is distributed.
Rattan: Any of various climbing palms of the genera Calamus, Daemonorops, or Plectomia of tropical Asia, having long, tough, slender stems.
Red Tide: "Red Tide" is a common name for a phenomenon whereby, under certain conditions, a species of algae that contain reddish pigments reproduces quickly and produces huge numbers of algae (i.e. "blooms") such that the water appears to be colored red. Although most such species of algae do not produce toxic chemicals, some do, and the term "red tide" has come to mean the blooming of a toxic form of red-pigmented algae that can be transmitted through the aquatic food chain and harm higher organisms including fish, marine mammals, and even humans that feed either directly or indirectly on them.
Relict: A persistent remnant of an otherwise extinct flora or fauna.
Restinga: An area containing scrubby vegetation typical of sand marine barrier islands.
Rhizome: A somewhat elongated, usually horizontal, subterranean plant stem that is often thickened by deposits of reserve food material, produces shoots above and roots below, and is distinguished from a true root in possessing buds, nodes, and usually scale-like leaves (Merriam-Webster).
Riparian: Referring to something living or located adjacent to a waterbody (usually, but not always, a river or stream).
Roost: To settle down for rest or sleep.
Rorqual: The rorquals are those baleen whales that are characterized by the presence of conspicuous grooves, or pleats, on their throats. (The word "rorqual" is derived from the Old Norse word for "grooved whale.") Rorquals include the minke, sei, Bryde's, blue, fin, and humpback whales.
Rostrum: The "snout" or "beak" of a dolphin or whale.
Ruminant: An animal with a specialized digestive system which includes chewing the cud.
Rut: A period of concentrated sexual activity; the mating season.

Last modified: October 15, 2005;