What term refers to the environment where a species lives?

• A. Organism
• B. Niche
• C. Habitat
• D. Community

Answer: (C)

The environment where a species lives is called its habitat. A habitat includes the physical space and conditions that provide the resources a species needs to survive, such as food, water, shelter, and the right climate. For a forest bird, the habitat is the forest where it finds trees to perch, insects to eat, and nesting sites.

An organism is simply an individual living thing. A niche is the role a species plays in its ecosystem—how it obtains food, how it interacts with other species, and how it fits into the environment. A community is all the different populations living together in the same area. So habitat focuses on the place and surroundings, while niche and community describe the species’ role and the group of living things, respectively.