2. Assignment
Biotic Community:
Biotic community coined by Karl Mobius in 1877 describes ‘the interacting organisms living
together in a habitat(Biotope)”. Biotic community is an association of number of interrelated
and inter dependent populations belonging to different species in a common environment
survive in nature. Biotic community comprises a number of populations of different species
interactions between them and the abiotic environment. These populations include animal
community, plant community, and microbial community sharing a common environment and
exhibits various types of direct or indirect relationships among them.
3. Characteristics Biotic community
1.Stratification:
Communities that posses a large biomass usually exhibit stratification .that is the
population they contain are spaced out or distributed in to definite horizontal or vertical strata.
2.Ecological Dominance:
An ecological dominant may be defined as a species population that
exercise a major controlling effect on the nature of the community. In every community some
plants and animals exert a dominant influence,in determining the nature and function of their
numbers activities of their important reasons called ecological dominants.
3.Interdependence:
Various kinds of interactions bring about a certain degree of integration within the members of
a community. Food,reproduction,and protection are the principal links which make the
members of community interdependent
4.Species Diversity:
This means that species of plants and animals are live in a particular community. An important
characteristics of different species it contains and their abundance. Diversity actually depends
on species richness and on the equitability of species abundance.
5.Relative Abundence:
This emphasis the relative portions of different species in Ac community.
4. The Biotic community consist of living organisms (organic )and non-living organisms ( abiotic )
that occurs in a specific locale and the physical and chemical factors that make up the
environment.
BIOTIC COMPONENTS:
Biotic are the living factors which interact with organisms and non-living factors of the
ecosystem .eg: plants, fungi, trees ,animals, and people.
BIOTIC ORGANISMS:
PRODUCERS:
These are mainly green plants they synthesis organic food from simple organic compounds
namely carbon dioxide and water with chlorophyll and sunlight. Hence their name the process
is called photosynthesis .Represented as under
6 Co2+ 5 H2o+ C6 H12 O6+ 6O2
The producers (1)provide food and O2 to the animals (2)and reduce CO2 and H2O Contents
from the environment.
2.CONSUMERS:
They are mainly the animals they are unable to synthesis food for themselves. Therefore they
take other organisms or their parts hence their name the consumes are called herbivores.
When they feed on plants , and carnivorous if they take other animals grasshopper, rat, rabbit,
5. goat and cattle are common herbivores. Frog, wolves, tiger, and lions are familiar
carnivores.cat, dog, bear and man take both plant and animal food they are termed omnivores.
3.DECOMPOSERS:
These are mainly bacteria and fungi of decay. They obtain food from the dead producers and
consumers and latter’s waste products. They decompose these materials into(small organic
molecules which they utilize themselves . (2)inorganic components that are released in to the
environment for reuse as raw materials by the producers .they are found in the soil ,and the
bottom of ponds, lakes and oceans.
ABIOTIC COMPONENTS:
Abiotic components of ecosystem are those that without life .Thus they are referred as non-
living components eg: sunlight, water, soil, temperature ,atmospheric gases ,wind etc.
1.LIGHT:
Light energy is the primary source of energy in nearly all ecosystems. Its the energy that used
by green plants during the process of photosynthesis. A process during which plants
manufacture organic substances by combining inorganic substances.
2.TEMPERATURE:
The distribution of plants and animals is greatly influenced by extremes in temperature for
instance the warm season. The opening of the flowers of various plants during the and the
night often used to temperature difference between the day and the night. It also helps the
germination of the seeds of some plants. Temperature may also affect some fruit trees such as
peach require a cold period each year so that it can blossom in the spring.
6. 3.WATER :
Plant and animal habitat vary from entirely aquatic environments to vary dry deserts .Water is
essential for life and all organisms depend up on it to survive in especially desert areas.
4.ATMOSPHERIC GASES:
The most important gases used by plants and animals are ,
1.Oxygen: Oxygen is used by all living organisms during respiration.
2.Carbon Dioxide: Carbon Dioxide is used by green plants during photosynthesis.
3. Nitrogen: Nitrogen is made available to plants by certain bacteria and through the action of
lightning.
4.Wind: Winds carry water vapour which may condense and fall in the form of rain, snow or
hail. Winds plays a role in pollination and seed dispersal of some plants. Wind erosion can
remove and redistribute topsoil, especially where vegetation has been reduced.
POND COMMUNITY
Pond are still bodies of fresh water no more than 60 feet deep. Ponds may form naturally from
the rain water or springs ,or they may be Artificial. Ponds are smaller than lakes but are still
capable of nurturing plenty of life forms .Pond ecosystem consist of biotic factors are abiotic
factors.
BIOTIC FACTORS FOUND IN POND COMMUNITY
Micro Organisms, Zooplanktons, Crustaceans, Insects, Beetles
7. Fishes(Cray fish ,Tadpoles etc)
Some live above the water(ducks, insects etc)
Some live in the area surroundings the ponds (raccoons, earthworms etc).(they are
herbivores and feed on algae and found in aquatic systems.)
ABIOTIC FACTORS FOUND IN PONDS COMMUNITY
Water Depth,
Turbidity,(amount of water cloudiness),
Salinity(salt concentration)
Available nutrients(nitrogen, phosphorous etc)
Dissolved oxygen (amount of oxygen dissolved in the water)
8. CONCLUSION
Biotic communities vary in size, and larger ones may contain smaller ones. Species interactions
are evident in food or feeding relationships. A method of delineating biotic communities is to
map the food network to identify which species feed upon which others and then determine
the system boundary as the one that can be drawn through the fewest consumption links
relative to the number of species within the boundary.
REFERENCE
• Kendeigh ,S.Charles .1961.Animal Ecology .Prentice –Hall
• Mobius Karl 1877.Die Auster und die Austernwirtschaft.
