Even on our own planet, the variation of life is incredibly diverse, from plant life and animals, through fungi, to the incredibly small organisms like viruses, bacteria, and protoctista. All of these living things, organisms, are incredibly important, and their chain interactions with each other, shape and effect the world in which we live.

This is why biologists study all kinds of organisms, not just the exotic, like the lions on the Serengeti or the gorillas in Uganda. But also more common organisms like insects, that would be regarded as pests by farmers, aphids for example, that attack crops, or indeed insects that would be regarded as beneficial by gardeners, ladybirds, which feed on aphids. The study of all these living things is called biology, and it is possible for anyone to make a study of organisms. Wherever you live, there will be some kind of organism close by, and by making a study of them, you will gain an understanding of how they live and interact with the world around them.

The diversity of habitats, the places where organisms live, is also varied, and organisms are found throughout the world. From temperate climates near to the equator, to the extreme colds of the Arctic and Antarctic, and to the extreme heat of the desert. Living organisms are found on land, in the seas and under the soil beneath our feet.

Plants for example are found in many varied habitats. A tree may live in a wood or a forest, and interacts with all the other living organisms within this habitat. The white water lily lives on the surfaces of ponds, and will interact with the organisms that live within this habitat, while a cactus may inhabit a hot, dry, arid desert and interact with the other organisms within this habitat.

The conditions within the habitat, for example, the hot and humid conditions that exist within a jungle, make up the environment, in which jungle organisms live. Polar Bears live in habitats with cold and icy environments. Whereas fish that inhabit the sea live in a salt water environment, some in calm protected waters, some in open water that is subject to radical changes, and some fish even live at the extreme depths of the oceans, and are subjected to extreme environmental conditions of cold, darkness and extreme pressures.

To survive, organisms need to be well adapted to the environment and habitats in which they live. You will have noticed that marine animals have similar adaptations that suit their habitat and environment. Fish tend to have flat scaly bodies, that are streamlined, and are able to move through the water with ease. Their tales and their fins are used for propulsion, balance and steering.

Penguins also spend a lot of time in the sea, and their streamlined bodies are well adapted for this purpose. However, they also inhabit very cold climates, and they need to keep their bodies warm. To enable them to live in very cold temperatures, penguins have layers of fat to keep them warm, and very fine feathers that trap air close to the skin, insulating them further from the cold. They are very well adapted to their environment.

So far we have discussed the enormous variation of organisms, their varied habitats, the range of environments in which they live, and how they are adapted to their various habitats and environments. But what do all organisms have in common?

All organisms must be able to metabolise the chemicals that they take into their bodies. Without metabolising all the chemicals that are taken into the body, an organism cannot live. The chemical processes within every organism are essential to life.

Organisms need to grow. Plants continually grow throughout their lives, whereas animals stop growing when they reach adulthood. However, even when animals stop growing, the cell tissues within their bodies are continually being replaced. Plants and animals need to metabolise chemicals and food for these processes to continue. Growth is a characteristic that is essential to all organisms.

Energy is required for growth, to replace cell tissue, and for organisms to move around. Again metabolic processes are required to break down food, drive respiration, and to convert the energy stored in chemicals to the required forms of energy to promote growth and aid movement.

A plant will turn towards the light, a human will withdraw their hand quickly if given a static shock. A bat will respond to variations in sounds, when it locates its prey, or locates objects it needs to avoid. Bacteria cultures will grow at different rates, depending on temperature. Digestive processes are triggered by taste and smell. And most woman’s pupils will widen when Brad Pitt walks into a room. Sadly, I have the opposite effect. All living things respond to stimuli.

As stated, plants will turn towards the sun, and most animals can move around freely. All organisms are able to move.

All organisms must reproduce to continue the species. We are aware of sexual reproduction, where, generally there is union between the male and female of the species, as is the case for men and woman. However, some male organisms are able to fertilise the female eggs out-with the body. This is also known as sexual reproduction.

There is a second form of reproduction. This is asexual reproduction, where the organism does not require a male and female of the species to reproduce.

Not everything that an organism eats or takes in is required for its life processes. The bodies metabolism has to get rid of these materials to stop them building up within the organism. These materials can poison the organism, and to prevent this, the organism gets rid of these materials by excretion.

All organisms must feed to survive. Food provides the raw materials, the fuels that are required to drive all the processes of metabolism. Plants produce their own food by converting simple chemical compounds. For example, plants take in water and carbon dioxide, and by the process of photosynthesis, convert these simple chemical compounds to glucose, which then can be used as fuel for the plant. Animals tend to eat complicated chemical compounds as food, and break these compounds down into proteins, sugars etc. Food is required for growth, movement and energy to drive all the other metabolic processes.

Growth, energy, response, movement, reproduction, excretion, and feeding are common to all organisms. They require intricate chemical processes within each organism. An organisms metabolism is what drives all the chemical processes that occur within that organism.

I hope this article has sparked an interest in science. You may have a keen interest in biology. And you may now want to have a look at an organism for yourself. You can make a study of its habitat and its environment. Note how the organism has adapted to its habitat and its environment. And look at the life processes above and see that they do relate to the organism that you have chosen to study.

Try not to disturb the organism and the environment in which it lives.