The word ‘forest’ is derived from Latin word ‘For is’ which means outside uncultivated and uninhabited land. At the present time, forest means any land covered with trees, shrubs, climbers etc. The optimum conditions of temperature and ground moisture responsible for the growth of trees contribute greatly to the establishment of forest communities. The forest biomass includes a complex assemblage of different kinds of biotic communities.
Normally forests occupy about 40 per cent of the world at the International level, but in India the forests occupy about one-tenth of the total land area. Agricultural activities and the high human population densities have converted most of the forests into agricultural land. Thus, very little of the original community is left.
Abiotic components include organic and inorganic substances which are present in soil and atmosphere. In addition to these minerals, other components are dead organic debris. As a result of complex stratification in the plant communities, the light conditions are different which differ from one place to another.
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The different living organisms in the food chain are as follows:
These are mainly trees show much species of diversity and greater degree of stratification especially in tropical moist deciduous forests. The trees are of different kinds. Such differences are dependent on the formation and development in the climate. In addition to trees, shrubs and ground vegetation are also present. The dominant members of the flora in the forests are such trees as Tectona grandis, Butea frondosa, In template coniferous forests the dominant trees are species of Thyia, Picea etc. Whereas in temperate coniferous forests are trees of different species such as Picca, Juniferous etc.
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Primary Consumers:
They are herbivores that include the animal feeding on tree leaves as ants, flies, beetle, leaf- hoppers, bugs and spiders etc. as well as larger animals grazing on shoots or fruits of producers, the elephants, deer, squirrel and mangroves etc.
Secondary Consumers:
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They are carnivores like snakes, birds, lizards etc. which feed on herbivores.
Tertiary Consumers:
They are top carnivores like lions, tigers etc. which eat carnivores of secondary consumer level.
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They are wide variety of micro-organisms including fungi (species of Aspergillus, Trichoderma etc.), bacteria (species of Bacillus, Clostridium, Pseudomonas) and actinomycetes (species of Streptomycin etc.).