What term describes the living components of an ecosystem?

The term that describes the living components of an ecosystem is "biotic factors." This encompasses all the organisms, such as plants, animals, fungi, and microorganisms, that interact with each other and their physical environment. These living components are essential for maintaining the ecosystem's structure and function, as they participate in various ecological processes like energy flow, nutrient cycling, and population dynamics.

Abiotic factors, in contrast, refer to the non-living elements of an ecosystem, such as water, air, soil, and temperature. Physical factors could be interpreted as including both abiotic and biotic components, but they are not specifically focused on living organisms. Environmental contributors is a broader term that might encompass both living and non-living components in various contexts, making it less precise for defining living components specifically. Thus, biotic factors is the most accurate term to describe the living components of an ecosystem.