THE LIVING WORLD

• what is an ecosystem?

  An ecosystem is a system in which organisms interact with eachother and their environment
• nutrient cycle


  Plants take in nutrients to build into new organic matter.

  • Nutrients are taken up when animals eat plants and then returned to the soil when animals die and the body is broken down by decomposers.
• litter

  This is the surface layer of vegetation, which over time breaks down to become humus.
• biomass

  The total mass of living organisms per unit area.
• flora

  Plant life occurring in a particular region or time.
• fauna

  Animal life of any particular region or time.