Lesson 1: Elements of a Forest Ecosystem

We will now explore the specific role that trees and plants play in the forest ecosystem as a whole. But before we can fully understand this role, we must first understand what a forest ecosystem is and how it functions.

An ecosystem is a system made up of non-living (abiotic) and living (biotic) elements, that depend on each other to survive. A forest ecosystem is a large area of land covered in trees, plants and other living animals functioning together with the abiotic factors of the environment, such as water, sunlight, oxygen, temperature and both biotic and abiotic soil.

In the following lessons, we will describe the non-living and living elements that make up a forest ecosystem, and examine the various interactions that occur between these elements.