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Understanding wildlife requires an understanding of the relationships between different organisms and their environment. This idea forms the crux of ecology. Ecology examines how organisms interact with one another and their environment. Ecology can be divided into different levels of organization:

For the purpose of understanding wildlife, we shall look closely at ecosystems, communities and populations. The study of individual organisms is left to biology, and remains crucial to this purpose. The ecosphere itself can be understood as a large, complex organism whose many organs consist of interconnected ecosystems. Such a large system is quite difficult to examine as one thing. The ecosphere is applicable to wildlife concerns when it comes to the debate on extinction. One side of the debate argues that there is an international wildlife crisis currently in the world, whereas the other side disclaims any such possibility.

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