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How do individuals, populations, communities, and ecosystems differ, and how are they connected?

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Final answer:

An individual organism contributes to the population of its species, which in turn is part of a community comprising multiple species. A community, along with abiotic environmental factors, forms an ecosystem.

Step-by-step explanation:

The levels of organization from an individual organism to the biosphere are all interconnected. An individual is a single organism, such as a pine tree in a forest. A population consists of all the individuals of a single species living in a specific area, like all the pine trees in that forest. A community comprises all the populations of different species that interact in an area, including all plant and animal species in the forest.

Finally, an ecosystem encompasses a community along with all the abiotic factors, such as climate and soil, that influence them. An ecosystem is a complex web of living organisms interacting with one another and with their nonliving environment. Ecologists find it important to distinguish between these levels to understand the relationships and dynamics within and between each level of organization.

The relationship between an individual and a community is that individuals make up populations, which together form communities. A population is defined by its genetic similarity and the potential for interbreeding, while a community includes various populations of different species.

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