Biotic vs Abiotic – Difference and Comparison

What are Biotic Components?

Biotic, in its most basic definition, can be defined as a living entity capable of surviving independently. Biotics directly impact the ecosystem since they aid in producing, reproducing, and maintaining a healthy balance between nature and the ecosystem. The ecosystem’s life cycle revolves around the food production of plants and animals, and this cycle is perpetuated by biotic processes such as photosynthesis. The three primary components of biotic components are as follows:

  1. Producers
  2. Consumers
  3. Decomposers

Plants and animals are examples of producers since they are species that produce their own sustenance. Humans, for example, who are reliant on producers for their food, are referred to be consumers in this sense. Decomposers are creatures that degrade leftovers that have not been ruined or that have been left behind by humans after they have made a mistake in some way.

What are Abiotic Components?

Abiotic components are required for biotic components to exist and vice versa. It has been demonstrated that both of them are interdependent; for example, plants and human beings cannot survive without sunlight and water.

Similarly, it has been shown that abiotic components are useless without biotic components, and they will have no meaning without biotic components. When examining the differences between biotic and abiotic components, it can be determined that while they are both completely distinct, a good ecosystem cannot be established without the two major components, the biotic and abiotic components working together.

For example, all physical or chemical variables like air, water, sunlight, gases like carbon dioxide & oxygen, and so on help ensure the existence of biotic components in an ecosystem. They aid in the survival of biotic components, but they also help them grow by creating a healthy environment to thrive. To put it another way, abiotic variables are the factors that determine whether or not living creatures will survive.

Difference Between Biotic and Abiotic Components

  1. The primary distinction between biotic & abiotic elements is that biotics comprise living organisms that depend on oxygen to maintain their existence. In contrast, abiotic components are non-living organisms that do not require oxygen for survival, as discussed previously.
  2. Abiotic variables directly impact biotic components by changing their capacity to produce & reproduce as a result of supplying them with the right environmental conditions. As opposed to ecological variables, biotic factors directly affect themselves, as demonstrated by the life cycle, in which organisms depend on one another for the acquisition and provision of sustenance.
  3. In contrast to abiotic factors, which begin in the biosphere, biotic factors originate in the lithosphere, hydrosphere, or atmosphere.
  4. The biotic components directly impact the ecosystem, while the abiotic factors have an indirect effect.
  5. On the other hand, abiotic variables take time to adjust to changes in the environment, whereas biological factors may adapt quickly to changes in the background.

References

Comparison Between Biotic and Abiotic

Parameters of ComparisonBioticAbiotic
IntroductionIf we look at the concept of biotics in the ecosystem context, it is nothing more than all living species that can survive in the ecosystem.Abiotic organisms are defined as those that are not living but serve a significant role in the ecosystem, without which the ecosystem would be unable to function correctly.
ExamplesPlants, humans, fungus, bacteria, and other microorganismsWater, air, sunlight, and so forth
Factors involveIn the biotic category, we find that they generate a cycle in the ecosystem by producing and reproducing and progressively building up the process.In general, abiotic variables contribute to the ecosystem’s cycle in terms of external conditions.
AffectsBiology impacts both the ecosystem and the life cycle, and it has a direct effect on both the ecosystem and the life cycle.Abiotic factors have an indirect influence on both ecosystems and the life cycle.
AdaptationIt can adapt quite quickly.It takes time for the body to adjust.
OriginThey have their origins in the biosphere.They are generated through the interaction of the lithosphere, hydrosphere, & atmosphere with one another.
  1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0146638006001665
  2. https://academic.oup.com/jxb/article-abstract/63/10/3523/545726