faunal	1. All the animal life of a given place or time 2. A descriptive list of such animals (faunal).
fermentation	A chemical reaction in which an organic molecule splits into simpler substances, esp., the conversion of sugar to ethyl alcohol by yeast.
fertiliser	Any substance, such as manure, added to soil or water to increase its productivity.
filament	The stalk of a stamen.
filter feeder	Makes use of siphons or articulate appendages to create a water current which brings in water rich in suspended particles.
fish	Member of the superclass Pices, which breathe through gills and usually possess scales and are cold-blooded. Living subgroups include the Agnatha, Chondrichthyes and Osteichthyes.
fishing stock	Part of a fish population usually with a particular migration pattern, specific spawning grounds, and subject to a distinct fishery. A fish stock may be treated as a total or a spawning stock. Total stock refers to both juveniles and adults, either in numbers or by weight, while spawning stock refers to the numbers or weight of individuals which are old enough to reproduce.
fission	A form of asexual reproduction involving a division into two or more equal parts.
fjord	A long narrow inlet of the sea between high steep cliffs, common in Norway.
floating boom	Used to control the spread of oil to reduce the possibility of polluting shorelines and other resources, as well as to concentrate oil in thicker surface layers, making recovery easier. Also used to divert and channel oil slicks along desired paths, making them easier to remove from the surface of the water.
flora	1. All the plant life of a given place or time 2. A descriptive list of such plants, often including a key for identification.
food chain	A simplistic concept referring to the sequence of organisms on successive trophic levels within a community, through which energy is transferred by feeding; energy enters the food chain during fixation by primary producers (mainly green plants) and passes to the herbivores (primary consumers) and then to the carnivores (secondary and tertiary consumers). Nutrients are returned to primary production by detritivores.
food web	Ecological description of the complex feeding interaction of all organisms in an ecosystem. Food webs often include the producer-consumer relationships between a number of neighbouring or inter-connected food chains.
friction	A resistance encountered when one body moves relative to another body with which it is in contact.