Tag: abiotic components

Nearly all of the energy, that drives ecosystems ultimately comes from the sun. 

An ecosystem is made up of components, biotic and abiotic. Biotic components constitute all the living members of an ecosystem. While abiotic component of an ecosystem consists of non-living substances and factors such as air, water soil, sunlight etc. Thus option C is the correct answer. 

Soil is made up of many layers, forming soil profile. The uppermost layer of soil is made up of sandy soil that withers away quickly under the effect of blowing wind, flowing water in the form of rains or floods. Apart from this, trees hold the soil particles together with the help of their roots. Deforestation activities lead to a decrease in the number of trees resulting in an increase in the rate of soil erosion.

Flow of energy and consumers are part of biotic components of ecosystem. Water, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorous all take paths from the non-living environment to living organisms, such as trees and then back to non-living environment. These paths known as biogeochemical cycles. In these cycles, a pathway is formed when a substance enters into living organisms, stays for a long time, then returns to the non-living environment. As it is part of abiotic component of ecosystem.

The fundamental source of energy in almost all ecosystems is radiant energy from the sun. The energy of sunlight is used by the ecosystem's autotrophic, or self-sustaining, organisms. Consisting largely of green vegetation, these organisms are capable of photosynthesis - i.e., they can use the energy of sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into simple, energy-rich carbohydrates. The autotrophs use the energy stored within the simple carbohydrates to produce the more complex organic compounds, such as proteins, lipids, and starches, that maintain the organism's life processes. Organic matter generated by autotrophs directly or indirectly sustains heterotrophic organisms. Heterotrophs are the consumers of the ecosystem; they cannot make their own food. 

Human beings (Homo sapiens) are omnivores. People eat plants, such as vegetables and fruits. We eat animals, cooked as meat or used for products like milk or eggs. We eat fungi such as mushrooms. We also eat algae in the form of edible seaweeds such as nori, which are used to wrap sushi rolls, and sea lettuce is eaten in salads. Bears are omnivores, too. They eat plants like berries as well as mushroom (fungi) and animals like salmon or deer.

The flow of wind and its rate affects the rate of soil erosion. Rainfall governs the amount of groundwater available to the soil. Temperature also affects the constitution of soil. The amount of sunlight and humidity in the air also affect the type of soil and characteristics of soil particles.