Wetland Terms – F
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F [fecal coliform–fungus]
- fecal coliform: Escherichia coli, E. Coli; of the family Enterobacteriaceae; bacteria naturally abundant in the lower intestine of humans and other warm-blooded animals, but rare in unpolluted waters.
- fertilizer: natural or synthetic materials used to increase the fertility of soil. A significant ingredient in urban and agricultural runoff that stimulates the growth of algae and other aquatic plants.
- field garlic: Allium vineale; an exotic invasive plant that grows in a clearing (meadow or field).
- filtration: the process of removing suspended particles from untreated water by passing the water through porous substances; part of the process to convert raw water into higher quality water.
- fishfly: an aquatic macroinvertebrate of the order Megaloptera; larvae have many filamentous appendages on each side of the abdomen, two hooked tails, six jointed legs, and large pinchers for mouth parts; somewhat sensitive to pollution.
- flocculation: part of a water-cleaning process in which small sticky particles clump together to make larger and heavier particles (floc). The larger particles eventually sink to the bottom of a containment area and can then be removed.
- fluoridation: part of the water treatment process in which hydrofluorosilicic acid is added to untreated water. The presence of fluoride in water reduces tooth decay.
- food chain: a series of steps from producers to consumers to decomposers; one possible way food and energy are transferred through an ecosystem.
- food web: all feeding relationships of organisms in an ecosystem.
- forage: the act of searching for food or provisions; to wander in search of food or provisions.
- forest: a dense growth of trees, together with other plants, covering a large area.
- fossil: The preserved remains or evidence of ancient organisms. Impressions of body forms or markings made by organisms may be preserved in rock, petrified bones, or wood.
- fossil fuel: substances derived from the decomposition of prehistoric plants and animals that can be burned to produce energy (i.e., coal, oil, and natural gas).
- fresh water: water that is not saline or brackish. Water that is low in salts, containing less than 1,000 mg/L of dissolved solids.
- fungus (plural, fungi): a type of phytoplankton; made of eukaryotic cells with cell walls; fungi obtain food by absorbing organic substances.
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