What term describes all living organisms that inhabit an environment?

• A. Biotic factors
• B. Abiotic factors
• C. Primary succession
• D. Secondary succession

Answer: (A)

In ecology, living components of an environment are called biotic factors. This term includes all living organisms that inhabit the space—plants, animals, microbes—and the interactions among them, such as predation, competition, and symbiotic relationships. Abiotic factors are non-living parts like temperature, sunlight, water, wind, rocks, and soil chemistry, which influence the living community but are not themselves living. Primary succession and secondary succession describe the process of a community developing after disturbance, not the living organisms that currently inhabit the environment. Therefore, the description of all living organisms in an environment is captured by biotic factors.