spatial scale

Comprised of two properties: 1) spatial extent - the size of the total area of interest for a particular study (e.g. a watershed, a country, the entire planet); and 2) spatial grain (or resolution) - the size of the spatial units within this total area for which data are observed or predicted (e.g. fine-grained or coarse-grained grid cells).

In ecology, spatial scale refers to the spatial extent of ecological processes. The responses of organisms, populations, species or communities to the environment may differ at larger or smaller scales. Choosing the scale appropriate to a given ecological process is crucial to hypothesizing and determining the underlying causes of the processes and effects involved.