The factors affecting an organism can be divided into two general classes, abiotic and biotic. Abiotic factors include features of the physical and chemical environment, such as climate, water movement, and many aspects of water quality. Biotic factors refer to those involving living organisms and their interactions, such as the organisms and processes in a food web. We also distinguish between dynamic and stationary abiotic factors. Stationary abiotic factors are fixed in the environment and include things like landscape features (e.g., bays, channels, and surface elevations) that change relatively slowly over time. Dynamic abiotic factors vary over time and space at various scales ranging from sub-daily (e.g., tidal direction and velocity) to annually (e.g., total water inflow and outflow).
Citation Information
Publication Year | 2022 |
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Title | Dynamic abiotic habitat |
Authors | Larry R. Brown, Steven B. Slater, Michael L. MacWilliams |
Publication Type | Book Chapter |
Publication Subtype | Book Chapter |
Index ID | 70230753 |
Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |
USGS Organization | California Water Science Center |