Question

Biosphere includes: (a) Plants and animals (b) Rocks and minerals (c) Atmosphere and lithosphere (d) Water sources

Short answer

The biosphere includes (a), (c), and (d).

Step-by-step solution

Analyzing the Components

Let's start by analyzing each option separately. The biosphere refers to the regions of the Earth that support life, including all living organisms and their interactions with the abiotic components of the environment. In other words, it encompasses any zone that can support life.

Evaluating Plants and Animals

Option (a), plants and animals, are living organisms. Since the biosphere includes all living beings and their habitats, this option is a fundamental part of the biosphere.

Evaluating Rocks and Minerals

Option (b) involves rocks and minerals. While these are important components of the Earth's crust (lithosphere), they are not directly part of the biosphere, which focuses more on living organisms.

Evaluating Atmosphere and Lithosphere

Option (c) includes the atmosphere and lithosphere. The atmosphere (air) is crucial for life, providing essential gases like oxygen, and the lithosphere supports life by providing the land and minerals. Both interact with living organisms, and so they are relevant to the biosphere.

Evaluating Water Sources

Option (d) refers to water sources. Water is vital for all living organisms, hence all water sources like rivers, lakes, and oceans are essential components of the biosphere as they sustain life.

Concluding the Elements of Biosphere

The biosphere includes components that directly support life or interact significantly with it. Therefore, options (a), (c), and (d) are elements of the biosphere, as they directly support life and play roles in sustaining ecosystems.

Key concepts

Components of Biosphere

The biosphere is a crucial part of our planet, as it includes all the living zones. It is a composite of both biological and physical components that work together to support and sustain life. Let's look at the essential elements of the biosphere:

• Living Organisms: This includes plants, animals, microbiomes, fungi, and other groups of organisms. All these contribute to the rich biodiversity within the biosphere and define the life forms it contains.
• Abiotic Elements: These are the non-living components such as air, water, and minerals. These elements interact with living organisms to influence their survival and reproduction.
• Ecosystems: The biosphere layers itself over ecosystems, consisting of communities of organisms and their physical environments.

Together, these components make the biosphere a dynamic place where life is continuously supported and sustained through complex interactions.

Living Organisms and Environment

Living organisms are integrally linked with their surroundings, forming a delicate balance that keeps ecosystems healthy.

• Interactions with Abiotic Factors: All organisms require nutrients from their environment. Plants take in sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to produce food in a process known as photosynthesis, highlighting the biosphere's dependency on the sun.
• Adaptations: Organisms adapt to their environments in varied ways to meet their needs. This can include behavioral changes, such as nocturnal activity in desert animals to avoid the heat, or physiological adaptations like thick fur in arctic animals.
• Ecological Relationships: Living organisms interact with each other through predation, competition, symbiosis, and other ecological dynamics. These relationships regulate population sizes and influence the distribution of organisms across the biosphere.

These intricate relationships showcase how life is nurtured by, and in turn nurtures, the environment, maintaining the balance of the biosphere.

Abiotic Components in Biosphere

The abiotic components of the biosphere play a critical role in providing the living conditions necessary for life. These non-living elements shape ecosystems and influence the survival of organisms.

• Atmosphere: It is composed of gases like oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide. The air allows for respiration in animals and photosynthesis in plants, making it essential for energy transformations within the biosphere.
• Water Sources: Oceans, rivers, lakes, and even underground water make up the hydrosphere, which is fundamental for all biological processes such as nutrient transport, temperature regulation, and waste removal.
• Soil and Minerals: The lithosphere includes soil that provides nutrients and minerals for plants. These resources are crucial because they support plant growth, which in turn supports animal life and complex food webs.

By interacting with living organisms, these abiotic factors create the environment that supports biodiversity and fosters intricate ecological networks.