What are biotic and abiotic factors in an ecosystem?
1 Answer
Biotic factors are any living factors and abiotic factors are anything non-living in an ecosystem.
Explanation:
Anything living in an ecosystem is a biotic factor. This is in contrast to abiotic factors, which are non-living factors of an ecosystem.
Examples of biotic factors include and are not limited to, mammals, birds, reptiles, trees, grasses, microorganisms, flowering plants, fish, bacteria, and so forth.
An example of an abiotic factor is sunlight: every ecosystem needs sunlight to function but sunlight is not alive. It is an important factor that helps organisms live, but it is not alive. Soil, precipitation, air, and rocks are other examples of abiotic factors.
Check out related Socratic content on how both factors affect ecosystems and why ecologists study both.
