Which term describes the nonliving components of an environment?

• A. Biotic factor
• B. Abiotic factor
• C. Habitat
• D. Cones

Answer: (B)

Abiotic factors are the nonliving parts of an environment. These include temperature, water availability, sunlight, soil minerals, pH, and humidity. They shape where organisms can survive and how they function, even though they aren’t living themselves. This is different from biotic factors, which are the living components like plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria. A habitat refers to the place where an organism lives and, in practice, includes both living and nonliving elements, not just the nonliving parts. A cone, meanwhile, is a reproductive structure of certain plants, not a term that describes environmental components.