Quest Academy
Std. VI - Foundation Notes
Subject : Biology Our Environment
Earth A Unique Planet : The part of the universe
in which we live is called ‘solar system. The solar
system consists of the Sun, & the eight planets
revolving around it. The Earth is one of the planets.
Factors Favourable to support Life on the
earth :
1. Rotation and Revolution of the earth : The earth
always spins on its axis from west to east. IT takes
24 hours to complete to rotate around itself. This
causes day and night. The earth takes 365.25 days
to complete one revolution. The earth’s axis is
tilted at an angle. The revolution of earth and the
tilt of its axis cause different seasons on the earth.
2. It is situated at appropriate distance from the sun.
Most of the places on the earth receive right
amount of solar heat to sustain life.
3. Presence of water : Three fourth of the surface
of the earth is covered with water in the form of
seas, rivers and lakes. 1% of the total water is
fresh water. Plants take water from the soilto
make their food. It helps in digestion, excretion
and many other biochemical reactions.
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4. Presence of atmosphere : The cover of gases
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surrounding the earth is called the earth’s
atmosphere. Atmosphere extends up to 1000 km
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from the surface of the earth. It mainly consists
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of nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, water
vapour and inert gases.
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5. Gravitational Force : The gravitational force
of the earth holds the atmosphere and doesn’t
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allow the gases to escape in to the space.
6. Presence of Minerals : All important minerals
Qare present in the soil which are essential for the
growth of plants.
Environment : All living things and their surround
constitute the environment Living beings influence
their surroundings and are themselves influenced by
the environment in which they live. The environment
can be broadly divided in to three segments, namely
biotic, abiotic and socio-cultural.
Biotic components of environment : It includes
all living organisms including plants, animals and
microorganisms. They are further divided on the basis
of their food habits and how they obtain their foods
in the environment.
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Producers : Green plants make their own food
material from carbon dioxide, water, sunlight, and
chlorophyll by a process known as photosynthesis.
They convert solar energy into chemical energy.
Consumers : All living organisms that cannot
make their own food either live live on plants or
animals. They are heterotrophs.
Animals that mainly feed on plants for their food
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are herbivores, e.g. cow, goat, deer etc.
Animals that eat flesh of animals. They are called
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carnivores, e.g. lion, tigers, eagle etc.
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Some animals eat both plants and animals. They
are known as omnivores. E.g. man, crow etc.
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Decomposers : They help in decomposing the
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dead bodies of plants and animals and hence act as
cleansing agents of our environment. The decomposers
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also puts back the various nutrients from the dead
bodies of plants and animals back into the soil, air
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and water for reuse by the crops. Thus there is a cyclic
exchange of materials between a biotic community
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and its environment in an ecosystem. The nutrients
are constantly recycled and are used again and again.
Abiotic components of environment : They are
known as nonliving components. Light, air and soil
are abiotic components. Climatic factors like rainfall,
temperature, wind, etc, are also abiotic components.
Soil : The soil is the uppermost layer of the earth
crust. Soil is formed by the weathering of rocks. The
soil contains minerals, water and humus. Soil is a
medium that supports the growth of plants. Life exists
in top soil. Just below the top soil is a layer of light
coloured soil called subsoil. The bottom layer is made
up of solid rock called bed rock.
Air : The most important components of air are
oxygen and carbon dioxide. Oxygen is needed for
respiration. Carbon dioxide is required for photosynthesis.
Cyclic movement of carbon dioxide and oxygen helps
in maintain their balance in nature.
Water : Primary source of water is rainwater.
Both plants and animals need water for their life.
Water acts as the universal solvent and plants absorb
minerals in the form of solution.
Temperature : degree of hotness or coldness is
called temperature. It controls the distribution of plants
and animals on the surface of earth. Some animals
like penguin and polar bear are found in cold places
whereas animals like camels can survive in the regions
of high temperature.
Light : Green plants manufacture food in presence
of sunlight. A considerable amount of light is stored
up as chemical energy in plants for future use. Light
also influences opening and closing of stomata. Plants
respond to light. It affects germination , movement
and flowering in plants. Some plants require light for
a longer period of time for flowering and some require
lesser exposure to sunlight for flowering. Most
animals are active and move about freely in day time.
Animals like earthworms and millipeds do not like
light. They are usually found in dark places inside the
make their food energy from chemicals in hydrothermal
vents. These are called autotrophs or primary producers.
Next come organisms that eat the autotrophs;
these organisms are called herbivores or primary
consumers - an example is a rabbit that eats grass.
The next link in the chain is animals that eat
herbivores - these are called secondary consumers an
example is a snake that eat rabbits.
In turn, these animals are eaten by larger predators
- an example is an owl that eats snakes.
The tertiary consumers are are eaten by quaternary
consumers - an example is a hawk that eats owls. Each
food chain end with atop predator, and animal with no

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soil. Owls, cockroaches are active at night, they do natural enemies (like an alligator, hawk, or polar bear).
not require light to move about. They are known as
nocturnal animals.
Interaction between biotic and abiotic
components of the environment :
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The producers, consumers, decomposers and the
abiotic environment depend on one another. There is
a system of give and take between the two. The abiotic

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substances supply nutrients to the producers. The
producers prepare food for the consumers. When the
producers and consumers die, they are decomposed
into simpler substances by decomposers. These are
put back into the soil, air and water. These nutrients
are again absorbed by the producers and the whole
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cycle is repeated again and again. Thus these

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interactions between biotic and abiotic components
result in a complete energy cycle. This energy cycle
The arrows in a food chain show the flow of energy,

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from the sun or hydrothermal vent to a top predator. As
brings forth many food chains in nature. The food the energy flows from organism to organism, energy

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chains which are in fact energy chains always start is lost at each step. A network of many food chains is
with producers, the plants. Only plants in the food called a food web.

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chains are capable of using the energy of sun. Plants
convert the solar energy through the process of
photosynthesis. Thus we can say that the sun is the
source of energy for all food chains.
Trophic Levels : The trophic level of an organism
is the position it holds in a food chain.
1. Primary producers (organisms that make their

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Food Chain : Every organism needs to obtain
energy in order to live. For example, plants get energy
from the sun, some animals eat plants, and some
animals eat other animals.
A food chain is the sequence of who eats whom
in a biological community (an ecosystem) to obtain
nutrition. A food chain starts with the primary energy
source, usually the sun or boiling-hot deep sea vents.
The next link in the chain is an organism that make
its own food from the primary energy source - an
example is photosynthetic plants that make their own
food from sunlight (using a process called
photosynthesis) and chemosynthetic bacteria that
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own food from sunlight and/or chemical energy
from deep sea vents) are the base of every food
chain - these organisms are calledautotrophs.
2. Primary consumers are animals that eat primary
producers; they are also called herbivores (plant-
eaters).
3. Secondary consumers eat primary consumers.
They are carnivores (meat-eaters) and omnivores
(animals that eat both animals and plants).
4. Tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers.
5. Quaternary consumers eat tertiary consumers.
6. Food chains “end” with top predators, animals
that have little or no natural enemies.
 When any organism dies, it is eventually eaten Equilibrium : As the number of carnivores in a
by detrivores (like vultures, worms and crabs) and community increases, they eat more and more of the
broken down by decomposers (mostly bacteria and herbivores, decreasing the herbivore population. It
fungi), and the exchange of energy continues. then becomes harder and harder for the carnivores to
Some organisms’ position in the food chain can find herbivores to eat, and the population of carnivores
vary as their diet differs. For example, when a bear eats decreases. In this way, the carnivores and herbivores
berries, the bear is functioning as a primary consumer. stay in a relatively stable equilibrium, each limiting
When a bear eats a plant-eating rodent, the bear is the other’s population. A similar equilibrium exists
functioning as a secondary consumer. When the bear between plants and plant-eaters.
eats salmon, the bear is functioning as a tertiary
consumer (this is because salmon is a secondary consumer,
since salmon eat herring that eat zooplankton that
eat phytoplankton, that make their own energy from
sunlight). Think about how people’s place in the food
chain varies - often within a single meal.
The Food Web :

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Numbers of Organisms : In any food web,
energy is lost each time one organism eats another.
Because of this, there have to be many more plants

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than there are plant-eaters. There are more autotrophs

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than heterotrophs, and more plant-eaters than meat-
eaters. Although there is intense competition between

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animals, there is also an interdependence. When one
species goes extinct, it can affect an entire chain of

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other species and have unpredictable consequences.

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