ABSTRACT
The concepts pertaining to the subject ecology, which is a little more than 150 years old, have been in use to unravel the mysteries of the natural worlds. The ecologist stands to adulate the intricate and interactive relationships of diversity of forms in nature and tries to explain with clear narrative of the interdependences of the living organisms that are dependent on the natural world for their energy needs and also to act as agents of change in the natural systems. To undertake eco-monitoring of the changing ecological system in the face of ongoing environmental perturbations, and for proper environmental planning and management strategies for overcoming the multifaceted environmental problems, rigid adherence to the basic ecological principles appears to be a prerequisite. This specialized interdisciplinary subject not only explains the intricate relationships among the living organisms in respect of their surrounding environment but also provides necessary inputs to understand the root causes of most of the environmental problems. Depending on the surrounding ecosystems, human well-being is likely to become prone to the impact of environmental changes. Predictive systems ecology tries to understand the dynamics of ecological systems and also to predict the properties and behavior of ecological systems to manage them. The chapter tries to record historical paths and evolutionary trends of development of ecological sciences along with highlighting basic, traditional and modern subject components of ecology citing relevant models, hypothesis and theories.
