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echinoderms – Phylum of spiny-skinned marine invertebrates. They are highly variable and include starfish, sea urchins, brittle stars and sea cucumbers.

ecoregions – Ecoregions (or ecozones) are relatively large units of land or water that contain distinct assemblages of natural communities sharing a majority of species, climate, soils, environmental conditions and general topography. For example, ecoregions at the continental scale would be Australia or Latin America, whereas on a country scale, the boreal forest and Atlantic Maritimes are different ecoregions of Canada.

ecosystem – A community of plants, animals and other organisms, plus their physical and chemical environment.

ecosystem services – Services provided by ecosystems that benefit humans and are necessary for a healthy planet like oxygen production, water purification, pollination, soil formation and nutrient recycling.

elands – (Taurotragus oryx) Large (about 2 meters tall, about 800 kilograms) antelope of Africa. Elands form large herds when grazing. Their numbers have been severly reduced by hunting.

EN – (Endangered) One of three categories of threat on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

endemic – Restricted to a particular geographic region and found nowhere else in the world.  

Endemic Bird Areas – The NGO BirdLife International has identified the 218 Endemic Bird Areas worldwide where two or more bird species live that have restricted ranges less than 50,000 km². Most of these areas occur on islands or in mountainous regions and more than 83 percent are forested. More than 20 percent of the world's bird species, including 74 percent of all threatened species, are confined to just 1 percent of the world's land surface within these Endemic Bird Areas and therefore these regions should be the focus of conservation efforts.

endemism – The measure or quality of being found in a given location or region and nowhere else in the world.

eucalyptus – Evergreen trees native to Australia. The about 800 species live across all habitats and comprise about two-thirds of Australia's vegetation. Eucalyptus amygdalin is the world's tallest known tree – up to about 150 meters, taller than even the California Sequoias. Many species yield valuable timber, others medicinal oils (such as eucalyptus) and kino. Kaola bears only eat eucalyptus leaves.

evergreen – Having green leaves throughout the year.