Summary

In this lesson you explored the following essential questions:

• How do terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems support a diversity of organisms through a variety of habitats and niches?
• How do biotic and abiotic characteristics influence an aquatic and a terrestrial ecosystem?

Abiotic factors influence climate and create areas (biomes) with a particular set of abiotic and biotic characteristics. Within these biomes are habitats that meet the specific biotic and abiotic needs of some organisms. The range of an organism is the geographical area where the organism is found in its habitat. Within an ecosystem, there are many habitats and niches that overlap. An animal's niche is the interactions the animal has with the biotic and abiotic factors in its habitat.

Lesson Glossary

abundance: the number of individuals in a population

biome: a regional group of distinctive plant and animal communities that are adapted to the region's physical environment

climate: the average weather (taken over a long time period) for a particular region

habitat: a place or area with a particular set of characteristics, both biotic and abiotic, in which an organism lives and can survive

niche: a place occupied by a species in its ecosystem and its role

range: a geographical area in which a population or species is found

species richness: a number of species

stand: a group of forest trees of uniform species, composition, age, and health