habitat

The area in which an organism or group of organisms lives. It includes the climatic, topographic, *biotic, and, in the case of terrestrial habitats, *edaphic features of the area. There may be considerable variations in conditions within a habitat and also seasonal variations. Examples of habitats are seashore, woodland, pond, etc. Microhabitats are much smaller areas, for example, a bird's nest, a cow pat, or a log.