Test: The Living Organisms - Characteristics & Habitats

Bacteria and fungi are biotic organisms that act as decomposers. Water, soil and air are abiotic components.

Diversity refers to the variety of organisms (plants, animals and microorganisms) existing on the earth.

Xerophytes live in areas with very little water in the soil; some can survive through both very wet and very dry periods. This means that while they are commonly found in deserts, xerophytic plants may also grow in salt marshes, frozen land masses like the Arctic and Antarctic, or tropical forests.

Camel shows adaptation like hump on back, passes scanty of urine and the padded soles. Camel perspires(sweat) less to reduce water loss.

• In ecology, a habitat is the type of natural environment in which a particular species of organism lives.
• Every organism has certain habitat needs for the conditions in which it will thrive, but some are tolerant of wide variations while others are very specific in their requirements.
• A habitat is not necessarily a geographical area, it can be the interior of a stem, a rotten log, a rock or a clump of moss, and for a parasitic organism it is the body of its host.

The organisms which depend on other organisms for food are called heterotrophs. For example, man, dog, cat, deer, tiger, cow, non-green plants like yeast are all heterotrophs. They depend on plants or other organisms for their food.

During hibernation, an animal's body temperature, heart rate, breathing, and other metabolic activities slow down significantly in order to conserve energy. While resources are scarce, hibernation allows animals like bears, chipmunks, and bats to use their stored energy much more slowly.

Animals such as elk, moose, mule deer, white-tailed deer, pronghorn, mountain goat, bighorn sheep, black bear,yak grey wolf, etc. are found in the mountain ecosystem.

In grasslands, because of the open lands, animals can move freely. Most grassland animals are able to run very fast, which allows them to escape hunting animals.

Shape, size and other features of plants depend upon surroundings of the living things.