Ecology is one of the main components of biology, which studies the interaction of the environment with organisms. The environment includes various factors of animate and inanimate nature. They can be both physical and chemical. Among the first are air temperature, sunlight, water, soil structure and the thickness of its layer. The factors of inanimate nature also include the composition of soil, air and substances soluble in water. In addition, there are also biological factors - organisms that live in such an area. Ecology first began to be spoken of in the 1960s, it arose from such a discipline as natural history, which de alt with the observations of organisms and their description. Further in the article, various phenomena that form the environment will be described. Let us also find out what are the factors of inanimate nature.
General information
First, let's define why organisms live in certain places. This question was asked by naturalists during the study of the globe, when they compiledlist of all living beings. Then two characteristic features were identified that were observed throughout the territory. First, in each new area, new species are identified that have not been discovered before. They replenish the list of officially registered. Second, regardless of the growing number of species, there are several basic types of organisms that are concentrated in one place. So, biomes are large communities that live on land. Each group has its own structure, which is dominated by vegetation. But why can similar groups of organisms be found in different parts of the globe, even at great distances from each other? Let's figure it out.
Man
In Europe and America, there is an opinion that man was created to conquer nature. But today it has become clear that people are an integral part of the environment, and not vice versa. Therefore, society will survive only if nature (plants, bacteria, fungi and animals) is alive. The main task of mankind is to preserve the Earth's ecosystem. But in order to decide what not to do, we need to study the laws of interaction between organisms. Factors of inanimate nature are of particular importance in human life. For example, it is no secret to anyone how important solar energy is. It provides a stable flow of many processes in plants, including cultural ones. They are grown by a person, providing himself with food.
Environmental factors of inanimate nature
In areas that have a constant climate,Biomes of the same type live. What factors of inanimate nature generally exist? Let's find out. Vegetation is determined by the climate, and the shape of the community is determined by the vegetation. The factor of inanimate nature is the sun. Near the equator, the rays fall vertically to the ground. Due to this, tropical plants receive more ultraviolet radiation. The intensity of the rays that fall in the high latitudes of the Earth is weaker than near the equator.
Sun
It should be noted that due to the tilt of the earth's axis in different areas, the air temperature changes. Except the tropics. The sun is responsible for the temperature of the environment. For example, due to vertical rays, heat is constantly kept in tropical areas. Under such conditions, plant growth is accelerated. The species diversity of a given territory is influenced by temperature fluctuations.
Humidity
The factors of inanimate nature are interconnected with each other. So, humidity depends on the amount of ultraviolet radiation received and on temperature. Warm air retains water vapor better than cold air. During the cooling of the air, 40% of the moisture condenses, falling to the ground in the form of dew, snow or rain. At the equator, warm air currents rise, thin out, and then cool. As a result, in some areas that are located near the equator, precipitation falls in large quantities. Examples include the Amazon Basin, which is located in South America, and the Congo River Basin in Africa. Due to the high amount of precipitation, there arerainforests. In areas where the air masses are dispersed to the north and south at the same time, and the air, cooling, again descends to the earth, deserts stretched. Further north and south, in the latitudes of the USA, Asia and Europe, the weather is constantly changing - due to strong winds (sometimes from the tropics, and sometimes from the polar, cold side).
Soil
The third factor of inanimate nature is the soil. It has a strong effect on the distribution of organisms. It is formed on the basis of destroyed bedrock with the addition of organic matter (dead plants). If the required amount of minerals is missing, the plant will develop poorly, and in the future it may die altogether. The soil is of particular importance in human agricultural activities. As you know, people grow various crops, which are then eaten. If the composition of the soil is unsatisfactory, then, accordingly, the plants will not be able to get all the necessary substances from it. And this, in turn, will lead to crop losses.
Wildlife factors
Any plant does not develop separately, but interacting with other representatives of the environment. Among them are fungi, animals, plants and even bacteria. The connection between them can be very different. Starting from bringing benefits to each other and ending with a negative impact on a particular organism. Symbiosis is a model of interaction between diverse individuals. In the people this process is called "cohabitation" of different organisms. Important in theserelations have factors of inanimate nature.
Examples
Mutually beneficial and positive relationships can be considered the relationship between the roots of plants of the highest level and the mycelium of boletus and birch, as well as aspen and boletus. Another such example is the nitrogen-fixing nodule bacterium and leguminous plants. It is also necessary to select animals. An illustrative example of such coexistence can be called an ox bird and mammals. The feathered individual lives in Africa. There, she spends almost her entire life near herbivorous mammals, pecking out parasites from their skins. Thus, the bird is always full, and the animals are not tormented by pests. Factors of inanimate nature: light, water, habitat and nutrients - cause competition for environmental resources between individuals of some species. What does it mean? In this case, only certain organisms have the ability to consume some resources. An example of competition is a pine forest. Here trees of different ages "fight" for light. Fast-growing plants block out sunlight to slow-growing plants, which can lead to their death.
Interspecies competition
In the world there is a constant struggle between organisms of the same group with the same requirements for environmental conditions. For example, in a mixed forest, oak can compete with hornbeam. Different organisms can negatively influence each otherdue to the active substances that they release into water, air. These factors of inanimate nature can slow down the growth of other plants or provoke the death of the organism in general. Dodder, broomrape, petrov cross - these are the most popular types of parasites among plants. Parasitic bacteria can cause diseases of representatives of the flora. For some animals, the tissues of living plants are food. Take, for example, rodents, ticks and various insects. All of them are considered herbivores. In pastures, animals eat certain plants: they avoid bitter-tasting grasses and accurately determine which flora is poisonous. Or here's another example: ivy, wrapping around the trunk of its "victim", pulls all the juices out of it. But the orchid, located on the branches of trees, does no harm, using the plant as a habitat. Everything in nature is interconnected. And it must be protected, because it directly affects human activity.
