Among the abiotic factors, water stands out, essential for life.
A factor is an agent that develops actions in conjunction with other elements. Abiotic , meanwhile, is that which does not have life, as opposed to the biotic (what characterizes living organisms or constitutes the biota).
In any ecosystem , we can distinguish between biotic factors and abiotic factors . Biotic factors are the fauna, flora and the rest of the living beings present in an area; that is, animals, plants, fungi, etc. Abiotic factors, on the other hand, are those that arise through the chemical and physical components of the environment. In this way, we can name air , water and soil as abiotic factors, for example.
Although abiotic factors lack life, they are essential for the birth, development, subsistence and reproduction of all living organisms. A cow, for example, needs air and water: if it does not have access to these abiotic factors, it dies. That is why it can be said that biotic factors require the presence of abiotic factors to exist.
Sunlight, among the most important abiotic factors
One of the most important abiotic factors is sunlight , which is a great source of energy , if not the fundamental one. Plants can convert light energy into chemical energy through photosynthesis. This same energy is present in all the organic substances produced by plants and is ingested by animals through food.
Sunlight, on the other hand, determines the development of biological rhythms. Depending on the characteristics of this abiotic factor, species live in one way or another. Regarding its variability, we can say that it is affected by various causes, among which are the translational and rotational movements of our planet.
Since the Earth does not remain in the same position all the time, but rotates and moves constantly around the Sun, what is known as the photoperiod , the amount of light corresponding to a moment in time, is produced, and this derives in inevitable periodic and physiological changes.
Sunlight is an abiotic factor.
Essential for development
This abiotic factor is absolutely necessary for our development, and it is important to note that although it is considered "inexhaustible", only a portion of it reaches the surface of our planet: approximately 1.94 calories per square centimeter of solar energy reaches the Earth every minute, but 0.582 return to space due to reflection with the clouds and dust in our atmosphere, and 0.388 calories remain in the layers of the atmosphere through absorption.
The relevance of sunlight as an abiotic factor for the ecosystem is such that, in short, there would be no life on our planet if it were not for it. It should be noted that the Sun provides us with other types of energy, in addition to visible light, among which are gamma rays, ultraviolet light , infrared radiation (heat) and radio waves. Ultraviolet light cannot be perceived by humans, but insects use it to distinguish different flowers, for example.
Temperature, another abiotic factor
Another of the main abiotic factors is temperature , which is needed by individuals that belong to the group of ectothermic organisms , that is, those that cannot regulate their own body temperature (for example, reptiles, amphibians and fish). . The process of photosynthesis, on the other hand, also uses a portion of heat, although small.
As mentioned above, water is also an essential abiotic factor for the development of living beings. So much so that scientists claim that the origin of life on our planet took place precisely in water.