Biotic and Abiotic

factors in the
Ecosystem
• Level of organization is used to show how
organisms interact with each other & their
environment
• Abiotic factors = non-living components that affect living
organisms
• Ex. Temperature, sunlight, rocks

• Biotic Factors = all living things or their materials that directly

or indirectly affect organisms in its environment (includes
interactions)
• Ex. Plants, animals, fungi, bacteria
 biotic
• A(n) ___________ factor is a living (or once living)
component of an ecosystem.

• A(n) ___________
abiotic factor is a non-living component of an
ecosystem.
• An ecosystem is the interaction betweenbiotic
__________
andabiotic
__________ factors
Biotic Abiotic
Biotic Abiotic
Biotic

Abiotic
Biotic Abiotic
Biotic Abiotic
• Do these abiotic factors affect the biotic parts of an
ecosystem? How?
If there is no water…can anything grow or
survive?
No!

If it is extremely cold one winter, will that

affect whether an animal makes it?
No!

So, abiotic and biotic DO affect each other. Even

though water and temperature aren’t living things,
they DO affect living things!
Biotic & Abiotic Influences
 Trees

Fish

Water

Squirrels

Air
 Trees
Temperatu
Soil
re

Bacteria
Grass

Fish

Water

Sun

Squirrels

Deer
Air
Minerals Flowers
• What abiotic factors are important for a plant to grow?
• Provides warmth to living organisms
• Provides solar energy (light) for green plants to make
their own food
• The number of hours of daylight triggers seasonal events,
such as:
-plants flowering
-birds migrating
• Important for life processes of all living things (plants
and animals) such as:
-distributing food particles through their bodies
-digesting food
• Important for organisms
that live under water, such as:
-trout
-whales
-algae
• Provides oxygen (O2), which animals breathe

• Provides carbon dioxide (CO2) for plants to use to make

their own food
• Provides a home for many animals that live underground
-earthworms

• Provides nutrients for plants

• Plants grow in soil

Organize the following words into TWO lists, Biotic and Abiotic
Factors:
Snake
Rain Oxygen
Clouds Mountain Sand
Moss Leaf People
Goldfish
Wind
Ph of soil Mud Sunlight
Air Weather
Tulip
Bumblebee Raccoon Temperature Polar Bear
Soil Earthworm
Rocks
Gold Minerals
Salamander Moon
Deer
Volcanoes Lake
Ice Fire

A cell Maple tree

Climate Raspberry bush
Corn on Eagle
the plant
 Organize the following words into TWO lists, Abiotic and
Biotic Factors:

Biotic Abiotic
Goldfish Moss Polar Bear Wind Clouds Sand
Leaf Raccoon Earthworm Sunlight Ph of soil Weather

Bumblebee Tulip Salamander Oxygen Air Mountain

Maple tree People Deer Mud Minerals Ice

Eagle A cell Corn on Moon Soil Rocks

the plant
Raspberry bush Lake Temperature Volcanoes

Snake Fire Climate

Rain
Gold