What is Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all the plants, animals and microorganisms (biotic factors) in an area interacting with all the non-living physical (abiotic) factors of the environment. An ecosystem is a completely independent unit of interdependent organisms that share the same habitat. Ecosystems typically form many food webs, which reflect the interdependence of organisms within the ecosystem. Examples of

ecosystems are rainforests, savannas, deserts, coral reefs, and urban ecosystems.Similar to an ecosystem is a biome, which is a climatically and geographically defined area of ecologically similar climatic conditions such as communities of plants, animals and soil organisms, often referred to as ecosystems. Biomes are defined based on factors such as plant structures (such as trees, shrubs and grasses), leaf types (such as broadleaf and needle-leaf), plant spacing (forest and woodland) and climate. Unlike ecozones, biomes are not defined by genetic, taxonomic or historical similarities. Biomes are often identified with particular patterns of ecological succession and climax vegetation.