In Life's Organizational Hierarchy, how is an organism related to a population?

• A. A population is a group of organisms of the same species living in the same area at the same time.
• B. A population is all the abiotic factors in an ecosystem that affect an organism.
• C. A population is a single multicellular organism made of tissues and organs.
• D. A population is all the different species living together in the same area.

Answer: (A)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the term 'organism' — an organism is a single living individual, such as one plant, animal, or microbe.
2. Step 2: Define 'population' — a population consists of multiple organisms of the same species living in a specific area at the same time.
3. Step 3: Recognize the hierarchical relationship — an organism is a single unit, while a population is a collection of many such units of the same species.
4. Step 4: Differentiate population from other ecological terms: a community includes different species, and an ecosystem includes both biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living) factors.
5. Step 5: Conclude that a population is directly related to organisms as it is made up of many organisms of the same species living together.