Ecosystems are formed from a mingling of nonliving abiotic components and the biotic community, which is composed of assemblages of living organisms. Many individuals in the biotic community are capable of capturing energy from sunlight through photosynthesis and, as a subset, form the plant community. The most prominent plants in the landscape are those with xylem and phloem forming vascular systems. While they are often the focus of plant community descriptions, green algae, mosses, and less-conspicuous plants also play a functional role in this ecosystem component. Heterotrophic organisms (including animals, bacteria, and fungi) feed on plants and form other subsets of the biotic community. These organisms are frequently examined along with plants in contemporary community studies. Understanding plant-plant, plant-animal, and animal-animal interactions has become a highly productive, community-level research area.

An old-growth Douglas-fir forest in the Pacific Northwest.

Community Concept

It is possible to...