CBSE Class 10 Answered

The ecological role and the space that an organism fills in an ecosystem is called its niche. The ecological niche involves both, the place where an organism lives as well as the role carried out by the organism in that habitat.

E.g. The backyard of the house or a farm forms the habitat of the sunflower plant. It absorbs sunlight and takes up nutrients and water from the surrounding soil and performs photosynthesis. The plant provides shelter and food for many other organisms such as bees and ants. It also releases oxygen in the atmosphere and takes in carbon dioxide, thus maintaining oxygen-carbon dioxide balance in the environment. This pattern of living forms the ecological niche of the sunflower plant.