Living and nonliving components interacting in an environment are described by which term?

• A. Lotic Ecosystem
• B. Ecosystem
• C. Riparian Zone
• D. Infiltration

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is that an ecosystem is a system where living organisms and the nonliving environment interact as a whole. In an ecosystem, plants, animals, microbes, minerals, water, air, climate, and soil all influence each other. Energy from sunlight flows through the system, supporting life, while nutrients cycle through organisms and the physical environment, creating interconnected processes like predation, decomposition, and symbiotic relationships.

This makes ecosystem the best answer because it captures both the living components and the physical surroundings and the interactions between them.

The other terms describe more specific or different concepts: a lotic ecosystem refers specifically to flowing-water environments like rivers or streams; the riparian zone is the interface area along a riverbank with distinctive vegetation and soils; infiltration is a process describing how water moves from the surface into the soil.