2.1.18—Community definition
- Syllabus
- First assessment 2026
- Objective
- 2.1.18
- Level
- SL
A Community Contains Interacting Populations
A community is all interacting populations living in an area at the same time; abiotic conditions belong to the ecosystem around it.
Include multiple species populations and their feeding, competition or decomposition links. Add water chemistry and sunlight only when defining the larger ecosystem.
Algae, insects, fish and microbes in a pond form a community through feeding and decomposition.
No; water is abiotic, so it belongs to the ecosystem, not the community.
A community contains populations, not the abiotic environment.