ecosystem

A community of interacting organisms and their physical environment functioning as a system. Energy flows and nutrient cycles link biotic and abiotic components into a dynamic whole.

Producers capture solar energy through photosynthesis, consumers transfer it through trophic levels, and decomposers recycle matter back into the soil and atmosphere.

Ecosystems range from a puddle to the entire biosphere. Each has characteristic species composition, energy budgets, and disturbance regimes that shape its trajectory over time.

Resilience depends on biodiversity — diverse ecosystems absorb perturbations and recover faster than simplified ones.

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