CHARACTERISTICS of LIVING BEINGS - The main ones!

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The great complexity of living beings has been studied and analyzed for centuries by the science of biology. Observation, analysis and multiple experiments developed by scientists such as Lynn Margulis and Charles Darwin, have brought to societies all the information necessary to know living beings in detail. Coming from a common ancestor, organisms or living beings were responsible for filling planet Earth with life millions of years ago.

If you want to know with details what are the characteristics of living beings, continue reading this interesting article by Ecologist Verde.

What are living things - simple definition

The definition of living beings describes them as organisms of complex molecular organization characterized by developing multiple and different communications, both internal (within their own anatomical structures) and external (with the environment and other living beings with which they are related).

In addition, it is possible to define the biological composition of these living beings, since each and every one of them is made up of four bioelements very abundant in nature, namely:

• Carbon.
• Hydrogen.
• Oxygen.
• Nitrogen.

If you are wondering how it is possible that from simple bioelements, living beings have been able to evolve and survive in the different corners of the planet, continue reading the next sections of this article, in which you will discover the main characteristics of living beings.

Characteristics of living things - list

Beyond the vital functions of living beings (nutrition, relationship and reproduction), multiple characteristics allow us to recognize living beings within the composition of nature. Between the Characteristics of living beings the following stand out:

• Cell organization, homeostasis and anatomical structure.
• Reproduction and genetic inheritance.
• Development, growth and death.
• Food and metabolism.
• Breathing.
• Interaction with the environment.
• Evolution and adaptation.

In the next sections we will detail each and every one of these characteristics, to better understand what defines and makes living beings so surprising.

Cell organization and homeostasis

If we use a microscope to know in the smallest detail the organization and structure of living beings, we will discover that cells flood each of its corners. These are considered the smallest element within the complex structure of living beings. However, despite its microscopic size, the cells are really complex and constitute the first link of the levels of organization of living beings, in which these cells are grouped to form tissues, they do so to give rise to vital organs, and the organs in turn constitute systems with various functions within the anatomy of the living being.

Now that we know what the cellular organization and general structure of living beings consist of, it is important to highlight how the biological process of homeostasis it allows to keep this organization in balance. It is a surprising and complex biological mechanism based on the self-regulation of the concentration of the chemical elements that make up living beings at their different levels of organization.

Reproduction and genetic inheritance

Reproduction is, without a doubt, one of the most striking and important characteristics of living beings. It is vital for the survival of the many species of living beings that inhabit the Earth, since, thanks to it, each and every living organism is capable of multiply your number of individuals existing and thus create new generations, while transmitting their genetic information (genetic inheritance).

There is a great variety of types of reproduction, which are mainly grouped into sexual reproduction (being necessary the intervention of two individuals of different sex) and the asexual reproduction (It is not necessary the mating between individuals). For example, here you can meet the Plants with asexual reproduction: characteristics and examples.

Cycle of development, growth and death of living beings

For individuals to be able to carry out their other vital functions, after the reproduction of their parents and the consequent creation of new living organisms, they will follow marked development and growth patterns.

Every living being contains in its genetic material, all the necessary information to develop and grow, acquiring energy and matter from the environment, which it is responsible for transforming inside its body for its use. The life of every living being is biologically destined to end at a certain moment, being death a natural process more within their characteristics.

Here you can learn about The life cycle of a frog: stages and images, to know a simple example of these characteristics of living beings.

Characteristics of living beings: feeding, metabolism and excretion

Through food, living beings fulfill one of their three vital functions, since without nutrition it is not possible to grow and develop. For this, numerous and different types of feeding (autotrophic or heterotrophic) allow living beings to acquire the necessary nutrients to develop their tissues and organs, which serve as energy to the cells that compose them. From them, a surprising enzymatic machinery is in charge of transforming and transporting usable and vital energy products to the different parts of the body.

Subsequently, the excretion process It will be in charge of complying with the elimination of waste substances, those that the body itself cannot assimilate or is not beneficial, but that will continue to be useful within the cycles of nutrients and trophic chains or networks.

Learn more about the feeding of living beings with these other posts by Green Ecologist about Autotrophic organisms: what they are, characteristics and examples and Heterotrophic organisms: what they are, characteristics and examples.

Respiration: vital characteristic of living beings

The third vital function of every living being is respiration. Through it, organisms are capable of capturing gases from different physical media (atmosphere and water), with the ultimate goal of incorporating certain chemical molecules into their cells, tissues and organs. The great diversity of living beings that exist on the planet is directly related to the diversity of types of respiratory organs that exist, such as the gills of fish, lungs of mammals, tracheas of insects, skin pores of amphibians or stomata of plants.

To expand this interesting information, you can consult each of the types of respiration in this set of Green Ecologist articles:

• +40 animals that breathe through gills.
• +105 animals that breathe through lungs.
• Animals with tracheal respiration: examples and names.
• 16 animals that breathe through skin.
• What are stomata of plants.

Interaction with the environment

To ensure their survival, in addition to fulfilling their vital functions, living beings need interact with the environment that surrounds them. In this way, they are capable of responding to different stimuli (chemical and sensory), counting on the development of specific organs or simply, with cells responsible for emitting and receiving signals from the environment and other organisms.

This surprising communication ability of some living beings, specifically animals, is reflected in the existence of sense organs and a cognitive nervous system that allows them to receive and transmit information abroad. Instead, plants use other mechanisms to relate to the environment and thus, for example, avoid growing near other organisms that could damage them or even "respect" the sunlight catchment area of other plants. If you want to know more about these chemical interaction mechanisms of plants, you can consult this interesting article about a very widespread question: Do plants feel pain?

Likewise, the relationship of living beings with their environment includes the interaction with other living thingsTo learn more about this topic, you can enter this link on Interspecific Relations: types and examples.

Evolution and adaptation

The different and interesting Characteristics of living beings that we have been discovering throughout this article, are the result of millions of years of biological evolution.

In nature, nothing happens haphazardly or without meaning, and the characteristics of living beings are constituted as one more instrument of survival, allowing the different organisms and elements of nature to remain in balance and fulfill their biological functions. Thus, the adaptation of living beings The environment in which they live is logical and effective thanks to the biological characteristics that define them.

If you want to read more articles similar to Characteristics of living beings, we recommend that you enter our Biology category.

Bibliography

• Hickman, C. P., Ober, W. C. & Garrison, C. W. (2006) Comprehensive Principles of Zoology, 13th edition. McGraw-Hill-Interamericana (Madrid), pp: 730-789.