Absolutely all organisms on planet Earth are affected by environmental factors. It can be direct or indirect, but still has a significant impact on human life, the condition of plants and animals. An environmental factor is an element of the environment that forces living organisms to adapt to certain living conditions. The influence can be exerted through the climatic features of the area (temperature, humidity, background radiation, relief, illumination), human activity or the vital activity of various living creatures (parasitism, predation, competition).
Determining the environmental factor
Environment is a kind of complex of conditions surrounding a living organism that affect its vital activity. It can be a combination of phenomena, material bodies, energies. An environmental factor is an environmental factor to which organismshave to adapt. This may be a decrease or increase in temperature, humidity or drought, background radiation, human activities, competition among animals, etc. The term "habitat" essentially means a part of nature in which organisms live, among what affects them direct or indirect influence. These are the factors, because they affect the subject in one way or another. The environment is constantly changing, its components are diverse, so animals, plants and even people have to constantly adapt, adapt to new conditions in order to somehow survive and reproduce.
Classification of environmental factors
Both natural and artificial effects can be made on living organisms. There are several types of classifications, but the most common are such types of environmental factors as abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic. All living organisms are affected in one way or another by the phenomena and components of inanimate nature. These are the abiotic factors that affect the life of humans, plants, and animals. They, in turn, are divided into edaphic, climatic, chemical, hydrographic, pyrogenic, orographic.
Light regime, humidity, temperature, atmospheric pressure and precipitation, solar radiation, wind can be attributed to climatic factors. Edaphic influence on living organisms through the thermal, air and water regime of the soil, its chemical composition and mechanical structure, groundwater level, acidity. Chemical factors are the s alt composition of water, gascomposition of the atmosphere. Pyrogenic - the effect of fire on the environment. Living organisms are forced to adapt to the terrain, elevation changes, as well as to the characteristics of water, the content of organic and mineral substances in it.
Biotic environmental factor is the relationship of living organisms, as well as the impact of their relationship on the environment. The influence can be both direct and indirect. For example, some organisms are able to influence the microclimate, change the composition of the soil, etc. Biotic factors are divided into four types: phytogenic (plants affect the environment and each other), zoogenic (animals affect the environment and each other), mycogenic (fungi have an effect) and microbiogenic (microorganisms are at the center of events).
Anthropogenic environmental factor is a change in the living conditions of organisms in connection with human activities. Actions can be both conscious and unconscious. However, they lead to irreversible changes in nature. Man destroys the soil layer, pollutes the atmosphere and water with harmful substances, violates natural landscapes. Anthropogenic factors can be divided into four main subgroups: biological, chemical, social and physical. All of them, to one degree or another, affect animals, plants, microorganisms, contribute to the emergence of new species and erase old ones from the face of the earth.
The chemical impact of environmental factors on organisms mainly negatively affects the environmentenvironment. To achieve good harvests, people use mineral fertilizers, kill pests with poisons, thereby polluting the soil and water. Transport and industrial waste should also be added here. Physical factors include moving in airplanes, trains, cars, the use of nuclear energy, the impact on organisms of vibration and noise. Do not forget about the relationship of people, life in society. Biological factors include organisms for which a person is a source of food or habitat, food should also be included here.
Environmental conditions
Depending on their characteristics and strengths, different organisms react differently to abiotic factors. Environmental conditions change over time and, of course, change the rules for the survival, development and reproduction of microbes, animals, fungi. For example, the life of green plants at the bottom of a reservoir is limited by the amount of light that can penetrate through the water column. The number of animals is limited by the abundance of oxygen. Temperature has a huge impact on living organisms, because its decrease or increase affects development and reproduction. During the ice age, not only mammoths and dinosaurs died out, but also many other animals, birds and plants, thereby changing the environment. Humidity, temperature and light are the main factors that determine the conditions for the existence of organisms.
Light
The sun gives life to many plants, it is not as important for animals as for representatives of the flora, but still they cannotdo without it. Natural lighting is a natural source of energy. Many plants are divided into light-loving and shade-tolerant. Different types of animals show a negative or positive reaction to light. But the sun has the most important influence on the change of day and night, because different representatives of the fauna lead an exclusively nocturnal or diurnal lifestyle. The effect of environmental factors on organisms is difficult to overestimate, but if we talk about animals, then lighting does not affect them directly, it only signals the need to restructure the processes occurring in the body, due to which living beings respond to changing external conditions.
Humidity
Dependence on water in all living beings is very large, because it is necessary for their normal functioning. Most organisms are unable to live in dry air, sooner or later they die. The amount of precipitation falling during a particular period characterizes the humidity of the area. Lichens catch water vapor from the air, plants feed on the roots, animals drink water, insects, amphibians are able to absorb it through the integument of the body. There are creatures that get fluid through food or through the oxidation of fats. Both plants and animals have many adaptations that allow them to waste water more slowly, to conserve it.
Temperature
Each organism has its own temperature range. If it goes beyond, rising or falling, then he can simply die. The impact of environmental factors onplants, animals and humans can be both positive and negative. Within the temperature interval, the organism develops normally, but as soon as the temperature approaches the lower or upper limits, life processes slow down, and then stop altogether, which leads to the death of the creature. Someone needs cold, someone needs warmth, and someone can live under different environmental conditions. For example, bacteria, lichens withstand a wide range of temperatures, tigers feel good in the tropics and in Siberia. But most organisms survive only within narrow temperature limits. For example, corals grow in water at 21°C. Lowering the temperature or overheating is deadly for them.
In tropical areas, weather fluctuations are almost imperceptible, which cannot be said about the temperate zone. Organisms are forced to adapt to the change of seasons, many make long migrations with the onset of winter, and plants die off altogether. Under unfavorable temperature conditions, some creatures hibernate in order to wait out an inopportune period for them. These are only the main environmental factors, atmospheric pressure, wind, altitude also affect organisms.
The impact of environmental factors on a living organism
The habitat has a significant impact on the development and reproduction of living beings. All groups of environmental factors usually act in a complex, and not one by one. The strength of the influence of one depends on the others. For example, lighting cannot be replaced by carbon dioxide, but by changing the temperature, it is quite possible to stop photosynthesis.plants. All factors affect organisms in one way or another differently. The leading role may change depending on the season. For example, in spring, temperature is important for many plants, soil moisture is important during flowering, and air humidity and nutrients are important when ripe. There are also limiting factors, the excess or deficiency of which is close to the limits of the organism's endurance. Their action is manifested even when living beings are in a favorable environment.
Influence of environmental factors on plants
For each representative of the flora, the natural environment is considered to be the habitat. It is she who creates all the necessary environmental factors. The habitat provides the plant with the necessary soil and air moisture, lighting, temperature, wind, and the optimal amount of nutrients in the soil. A normal level of environmental factors allows organisms to grow, develop and reproduce normally. Some conditions can negatively affect plants. For example, if you plant a crop in a depleted field that does not have sufficient soil nutrients, it will grow very weak or not grow at all. Such a factor can be called a limiting factor. But still, most plants adapt to living conditions.
Representatives of the flora growing in the desert adapt to the conditions with the help of a special form. They usually have very long and powerful roots, which can go 30 m deep into the ground. A superficial root system is also possible,allowing to collect moisture during short rains. Trees and bushes store water in trunks (often deformed), leaves, branches. Some desert dwellers are able to wait several months for life-giving moisture, while others delight the eye for only a few days. For example, ephemera scatter seeds that germinate only after rain, then the desert blooms early in the morning, and already at noon the flowers fade.
The impact of environmental factors on plants is also affected in cold conditions. The tundra has a very harsh climate, the summer is short, you can’t call it warm, but the frosts last from 8 to 10 months. The snow cover is insignificant, and the wind completely exposes the plants. Representatives of the flora usually have a superficial root system, thick skin of leaves with a waxy coating. Plants accumulate the necessary supply of nutrients during the period when the polar day lasts. Tundra trees produce seeds that germinate only once every 100 years during the most favorable conditions. But lichens and mosses have adapted to reproduce vegetatively.
Ecological factors of plants allow them to develop in a variety of conditions. Representatives of the flora are dependent on humidity, temperature, but most of all they need sunlight. It changes their internal structure, appearance. For example, a sufficient amount of light allows trees to grow a luxurious crown, but bushes, flowers that have grown in the shade seem oppressed and weak.
Ecology and man very often follow different paths. People activitiesdetrimental effect on the environment. The work of industrial enterprises, forest fires, transport, air pollution from power plants, factories, water and soil with oil residues - all this negatively affects the growth, development and reproduction of plants. In recent years, many species of flora have been included in the Red Book, many have become extinct.
Influence of environmental factors on humans
Just two centuries ago, people were much he althier and physically stronger than they are today. Labor activity constantly complicates the relationship between man and nature, but up to a certain point they managed to get along. This was achieved due to the synchronism of the way of life of people with natural regimes. Each season had its own working mood. For example, in the spring, peasants plowed the land, sowed cereals and other crops. In summer they took care of crops, grazed cattle, in autumn they harvested crops, in winter they did household chores and rested. The culture of he alth was an important element of the general culture of man, the consciousness of the individual changed under the influence of natural conditions.
Everything changed dramatically in the 20th century, during the period of a huge leap in the development of technology and science. Of course, even before that, human activity significantly harmed nature, but here all records of a negative impact on the environment were broken. The classification of environmental factors allows you to determine what people influence to a greater extent, and what - to a lesser extent. Mankind lives in a production cycle mode, and this cannot but affect the state of he alth. There is no periodicitypeople do the same work throughout the year, they have little rest, they are constantly in a hurry somewhere. Of course, working and living conditions have changed for the better, but the consequences of such comfort are very unfavorable.
Today, water, soil, air are polluted, acid rains fall, destroying plants and animals, damaging structures and structures. The thinning of the ozone layer also cannot but frighten the consequences. All this leads to genetic changes, mutations, people's he alth is deteriorating every year, the number of patients with incurable diseases is growing inexorably. A person is largely influenced by environmental factors, biology studies this effect. Previously, people could die from cold, heat, hunger, thirst, in our time, humanity "digs its own grave." Earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, fires - all these natural phenomena take the lives of people, but even more people harm themselves. Our planet is like a ship heading for the rocks at high speed. We need to stop before it's too late, correct the situation, try to pollute the atmosphere less, get closer to nature.
Human impact on the environment
People complain about a drastic change in the environment, deterioration in he alth and general well-being, but they rarely realize that they themselves are to blame. Various types of environmental factors have changed over the centuries, there were periods of warming, cooling, the seas dried up, islands went under water. Of course, nature forced a person to adapt to the conditions, but she did not set rigid limits for people, did not actspontaneously and quickly. With the development of technology and science, everything has changed significantly. In one century, humanity has polluted the planet so much that scientists clutch their heads, not knowing how to change the situation.
We still remember mammoths and dinosaurs that died out during the ice age due to a sharp cold snap, and how many species of animals and plants have been wiped off the face of the earth over the past 100 years, how many are still on the verge of extinction? Large cities are crammed with plants and factories, pesticides are actively used in the villages, polluting the soil and water, everywhere there is saturation with transport. There are practically no places left on the planet that can boast of clean air, unpolluted land and water. Deforestation, endless fires, which can be caused not only by abnormal heat, but also by human activities, pollution of water bodies with oil products, harmful emissions in the atmosphere - all this negatively affects the development and reproduction of living organisms and does not improve people's he alth in any way.
“Either a person will reduce the amount of smoke in the air, or the smoke will reduce the number of people on Earth”, - these are the words of L. Baton. Indeed, the picture of the future looks depressing. The best minds of mankind are struggling with how to reduce the scale of pollution, programs are being created, various cleaning filters are being invented, alternatives are being sought for those objects that today pollute nature the most.
Ways to solve environmental problems
Ecology and man today cannot reach a consensus. All governmental and non-governmental organizations should work together to solve existing problems. Everything must be done to transfer production to non-waste, closed cycles, on the way to this, energy and material-saving technologies can be used. Nature management should be rational and take into account the peculiarities of the regions. The increase in species of creatures that are on the verge of extinction requires the immediate expansion of protected areas. And, most importantly, the population should be educated, in addition to general environmental education.
