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Ecosystem engineer
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<p>An ecosystem engineer is any <a href="/facts/Species/oDg6b96r">species</a> that creates, significantly modifies, maintains or destroys a <a href="/facts/Habitat/zo1DN2gA">habitat</a>. These organisms can have a large impact on <a href="/facts/Species_richness/xb1W1j65">species richness</a> and landscape-level <a href="/facts/Heterogeneity/y84KQJxl">heterogeneity</a> of an area. As a result, ecosystem engineers are important for maintaining the health and stability of the environment they are living in. Since all organisms impact the environment they live in one way or another, it has been proposed that the term "ecosystem engineers" be used only for <a href="/facts/Keystone_species/JE5sSY3X">keystone species</a> whose behavior very strongly affects other organisms. </p>