Under the habitat understand the space used by living organisms for existence. Thus, the topic is directly related to the question of the life of any creature. There are four types of habitats, and there are a variety of factors that transform external influences, so these should also be considered.
Definition
So, what is an animal habitat? The definition appeared in the nineteenth century - in the works of the Russian physiologist Sechenov. Each living organism constantly interacts with the surrounding phenomena, which it was decided to call the environment. Her role is twofold. On the one hand, all the life processes of organisms are directly related to it - this is how animals get food, they are influenced by climate, natural selection. On the other hand, their existence has no less impact on the environment, largely determining it. Plants maintain the balance of oxygen and shade the soil, animals make it looser. Almost any change is caused by living organisms. The habitat needs a comprehensive study by anyone who wants to have an understanding of biology. It is also important to know that some creatures can live indifferent conditions. Amphibians are born in the aquatic environment, and often winter and feed on land. Airborne beetles often need soil or water to reproduce.
Symbiosis and parasitism
Surprisingly, the habitat of animals can be limited to the organisms of other animals. So, inside a person there are all kinds of representatives of microflora, and sometimes protozoa, as well as flat or round worms. The use by one organism of another as a habitat is a very common situation that has been present throughout the course of evolution. There is practically no species of animal that does not have internal parasites. In their role are algae, amoeba, ciliates. With regard to this phenomenon, the most important thing is to learn to distinguish between parasitism and symbiosis. In the first case, the habitat of animals is used by them to the detriment of the organism in which they are located. Parasites live exclusively at the expense of their host, while not killing him. Symbiosis, on the other hand, is a living that is beneficial for both parties, which does not bring problems and leads only to benefits.
Water
The water environment is the totality of all oceans, seas, glaciers and continental waters of our planet, the so-called hydrosphere, in addition, sometimes it also includes Antarctic snows, atmospheric fluids and those contained in organisms. It occupies more than seventy percent of the surface of the globe with the bulk in the oceans and seas. Water is an integral part of the biosphere,and not only water bodies, but also air and soil. Every organism needs it to survive. Moreover, it is water that distinguishes the Earth from neighboring planets. In addition, she played a key role in the development of life. It accumulates organic and inorganic substances, transfers heat, forms the climate and is contained in both animal and plant cells. That is why the water environment is one of the most important.
Air
The mixture of gases that forms the Earth's atmosphere plays a crucial role for all living organisms. The air habitat has guided evolution, since oxygen forms a high metabolism, which determines the structure of the respiratory organs and the water-s alt exchange system. Density, composition, humidity - all this is of great importance for the planet. Oxygen was formed two billion years ago in the process of volcanic activity, after which its proportion in the air steadily increased. The modern human environment is distinguished by a 21% content of this element. An important part of it is also the ozone layer, which does not allow ultraviolet radiation to reach the Earth's surface. Without it, life on the planet could be destroyed. Now the safe human habitat is under threat - the ozone layer is being destroyed due to negative environmental processes. This leads to the need for conscious behavior and constant selection of the best solutions not only for people, but also for the Earth.
Soil
Many living organisms live in the earth. The habitat is also used by plants that serve as food for most of the planet's living beings. It is impossible to unambiguously determine whether the soil is an inanimate formation, therefore it is called a bioinert body. According to the definition, this is a substance that is processed in the course of the vital activity of organisms. The soil habitat consists of a solid mass including sand, clay, silt particles; liquid component; gaseous is air; alive - these are the creatures that inhabit it, all kinds of microorganisms, invertebrates, bacteria, fungi, insects. Five tons of such forms live on every hectare of land. The soil habitat is intermediate between aquatic and terrestrial-air, therefore, the organisms living in it often differ in a combined type of respiration. You can meet such creatures even at an impressive depth.
Interaction between organisms and the environment
Every creature differs from inanimate nature by the presence of metabolism and cellular organization. Interaction with the environment occurs constantly and should be studied in a comprehensive manner due to the complexity of the processes. Each organism directly depends on what is happening around. The ground-air environment of a person affects him by precipitation, soil conditions and temperature range. Some of the processes are beneficial to the organism, some are indifferent, and others are harmful. Each has its own definition. For example, homeostasis is the constancy of the internal system, which distinguishes living organisms. The habitat can change, which requires adaptation - movement, growth, development. Metabolism - exchangesubstances accompanied by chemical reactions, such as respiration. Chemosynthesis is the process of creating organic matter from sulfur or nitrogen compounds. Finally, it is worth remembering the definition of ontogeny. This is a set of transformations of an organism, which are influenced by all environmental factors over the entire period of its existence.
Environmental factors
For a better understanding of biological processes, it is also necessary to study this definition. Environmental factors are a set of environmental conditions that affect a living organism. They are divided according to a complex classification into several types. An organism's adaptation to them is called adaptation, and its appearance, reflecting environmental factors, is called a life form.
Nutrients
This is one kind of environmental factors affecting living organisms. The habitat contains s alts and elements from water and food. Biogenic ones are those that are necessary for the body in large quantities. For example, these are phosphorus, important for the formation of protoplasm, and nitrogen, the basis for protein molecules. The source of the first is dead organisms and rocks, and the second is atmospheric air. The lack of phosphorus affects existence almost as sharply as the lack of water. Slightly inferior in value are elements such as calcium, potassium, magnesium and sulfur. The first is necessary for shells and bones. Potassium ensures the functioning of the nervous system and plant growth. Magnesium is included inmolecules of chlorophyll and ribosomes, and sulfur - in the composition of amino acids and vitamins.
Abiotic environmental factors
There are other processes that affect living organisms. Habitat includes factors such as light, climate, and the like, which are by definition abiotic. Without them, the processes of respiration and photosynthesis, metabolism, seasonal flights, and the reproduction of many animals are impossible. First of all, light is important. Its length, intensity and duration of exposure are taken into account. In relation to it, a whole classification is distinguished, which is studied by biology. A habitat filled with light is needed by heliophytes - meadow and steppe grasses, weeds, tundra plants. Sciophytes need shade, they prefer to live under the canopy of the forest - these are forest grasses. Facultative heliophytes can adapt to any conditions: trees, strawberries, geraniums belong to this class. Another important factor is temperature. Each organism has a certain range that is comfortable for life. Water, the presence of chemicals in the soil, and even fires are all related to the abiotic realm.
Biotic factors
The ground-air habitat is filled with living organisms. Their interaction with each other is a separate factor worthy of study. Two important types of biotic processes should be distinguished. The interaction may be phytogenic. This means that plants and microorganisms are involved in the process, affecting each other and the environment. For example, the fusion of roots, the parasitism of the vine on trees, the symbiosis of legumes and bacteria living on tubers. The second type is zoogenic factors. This is the effect of animals. This includes consumption, seed dispersal, bark damage, growth destruction, plant thinning, disease transmission.
Anthropogenic factor
Water, air or land habitats are always associated with human activities. People intensively change the world around them, strongly influencing its processes. Anthropogenic factors include every impact on organisms, the landscape or the biosphere. It can be direct if directed at living creatures: for example, improper hunting and fishing undermine the population of some species. Another option is an indirect impact, when a person changes the landscape, climate, air and water conditions, soil structure. Consciously or unconsciously, but a person destroys many species of animals or plants, while cultivating others. This is how a new environment appears. There are also incidental impacts, such as the sudden introduction of alien organisms in the cargo, improper drainage of swamps, the creation of dams, the spread of pests. However, some creatures die out without any human intervention, so blaming people for all environmental problems is simply unfair.
Limiting factors
All kinds of influence exerted on organisms from all sides, manifests itself in varying degrees. Sometimes the key is the substances that are required in the minimum amount. Accordingly, the law of the minimum was developed. He suggests that the weakest linkin the chain of needs of the organism, its endurance as a whole is considered. Thus, if the soil contains all the elements, except for the one necessary for growth, the crop will be poor. If you add only the missing one, leaving all the others in the same quantity, it will become better. If you add all the rest, without correcting the shortage, no changes will occur. The missing element in such a situation will be the limiting factor. However, it is worth considering the maximum impact. It is described by Shelford's law of tolerance, which suggests that there is only a certain range in which a factor can remain beneficial for the body, while in excess it becomes harmful. Ideal conditions are called the optimum zone, and deviations from the norm are called oppression. The maxima and minima of impacts are called critical points, beyond which the existence of an organism is simply impossible. The degrees of tolerance to certain conditions are different for each living being and allow them to be classified as more or less hardy varieties.
