The biosphere includes all of the Earth's biomes. An example of a biome is the photic portion of the ocean where sunlight is present and photosynthetic algae can be found. Biomes are divided into ecozones corresponding loosely with the continents and are further divided into ecoregions.
Species are related to each other through the role they play in the food chain as producers, consumers, and decomposers. Producers are photosynthesizing plants, consumers are herbivorous or carnivorous animals, and decomposers are organisms (such as bacteria) that break down organic material into minerals, which are eventually used by producers. There are more producers than consumers. The total amount of living matter in any place is called the biomass. When the biomass of plants increases it is measured as the primary productivity: the biomass produced by consumers and decomposers is measured as the secondary productivity.