List of symbiotic relationships
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This is an incomplete list of notable mutualistic symbiotic relationships, in which different species have a cooperative or mutually dependent relationship. This relationship can be endosymbiotic, whereby an organism resides in another's body or cells.
Some of these relationships are so close that we speak of the composite of two species as one unit; for example, we speak of the composite of algae and fungi as lichens. This is analogous to our speaking of a modulator and a demodulator as a modem.
Endosymbiotic relationships
| Symbiosis | Endosymbiont | Role of endosymbiont | Role of host |
|---|---|---|---|
| Euprymna scolopes (Mollusca) | Vibrio fischeri | Counter-illumination via bioluminescence[1] | Reproduction |
| Legumes | Rhizobia | Nitrogen-Relationship with the symbiotic host | Organic acids (principally as the dicarboxylic acids malate and succinate) |
| Anglerfish | Bioluminescent bacteria | Bioluminescent lure for prey capture | Protection |
| Vascular plants | mycorrhizae | Sequestering of phosphate ions from soil, disease protection | Photosynthates |
| Parasitoid wasps | Polydnavirus | Immune suppression of parasite host | Propagation of the virus |
| Poaceae (grasses) | Endophytic fungi | Disease prevention, Drought tolerance[2] | Photosynthates |
Autotrophic endosymbioses
| Host | Endosymbiont | Role of endosymbiont | Role of host |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coral (Cnidaria) | Zooxanthellae | Photosynthates | Protection, inorganic nutrients |
| Foraminifera (protists) | Variety of algae | Photosynthates | Locomotion, protection, inorganic nutrients |
| Sponges (Porifera) | Variety of algae (Often green-algae) | Photosynthates | Protection, inorganic nutrients |
| Hydra viridis (Cnidaria) | Chlorella | Photosynthates[3] | Inorganic nutrients |
| Elysia viridis (Mollusca) | Codium fragile | Photosynthates[4] | Locomotion, protection, inorganic nutrients |
| Convoluta roscoffensis (Platyhelminthes, traditionally) | Tetraselmis convolutae | Photosynthates | Locomotion, protection, inorganic nutrients |
| Pompeii worm Alvinella pompejana (Annelida) | Thermophilic chemoautotrophic bacteria | Insulation, chemosynthates | Locomotion, inorganic nutrients |
| Mole salamanders | Oophila | Oxygen (from photosynthesis) | Carbon dioxide (from respiration) |
| Riftia pachyptila (Annelida) | Bacteria | ||
| Solemya velum (Mollusca) | Sulfur-oxidizing chemoautotrophic bacteria[5] |
Digestive endosymbioses
- Humans and intestinal bacteria
- Ruminants such as cows and their intestinal bacteria and protists
- Termites and their intestinal bacteria and protists
- Aphids and Buchnera bacteria[6]
Other symbiotic relationships
- Humans and cultivated plants
- Humans and domesticated animals
- Humans and the Greater Honeyguide bird (which may have a similar relationship with the Ratel or "honey badger")
- Flowering plants and pollinators such as bees and flies
- Leafcutter ants and the fungus they "farm" (note also the third mutualist: a bacterium that secretes a chemical that kills molds that would otherwise feed on the fungus "farmed" by the ants)
- Leafhopper and meat ant
- Acacia Ants (Pseudomyrmex ferruginea) with the Swollen Thorn Acacia Tree (Acacia cornigera)
- Moray eels and cleaner shrimp or cleaner fish at cleaning stations
- Goby fish and shrimp
- Sea anemones and clownfish, crabs or shrimps (the bright colours of clownfish attract predators; the anemone provides shelter for the clownfish)
- Egyptian Plovers and Nile crocodiles (not scientifically documented, likely purely mythical.[7])
- Oxpeckers and rhinoceroses
- Cycads and cyanobacteria
- Azolla (water fern) and Anabaena (cyanobacteria)
- Ambrosia Beetles and fungi
- Sharks and remora- commensalism
- Fig trees and Amazon fruit bats
- Wombats and snails (mutualism) [citation needed]
- Lichen a mutualism between a fungus and algae (usually green-algae or cyanobacteria)
- Squirrel and a tree (commensalism)
- Mangrove Finches and Mangroves in the Galapagos
- Coyote and American Badger
- Simarouba amara: The small yellow flowers are thought to be pollinated by insects, the resulting fruits are dispersed by animals including monkeys, birds and fruit bats and the seeds are dispersed by leaf cutter ants.
- Olive baboon and African elephant
See also
References
- ^ Young, R.E. & C.F. Roper 1976. Bioluminescent countershading in midwater animals: evidence from living squid. Science 191(4231): 1046–1048.1251214
- ^ http://www.uri.edu/ce/factsheets/sheets/endophyte.html
- ^ Matthias Habetha et al. The Hydra viridis / Chlorella symbiosis.
- ^ R.K. Trench, J.E. Boyle and D.C. Smith (1973). "The Association between Chloroplasts of Codium fragile and the Mollusc Elysia viridis. I. Characteristics of isolated Codium chloroplasts". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences 184 (1074): 51–61. doi:10.1098/rspb.1973.0030.
- ^ http://www.springerlink.com/content/e24615311h534725/fulltext.pdf
- ^ Douglas, A E (1998). "Nutritional interactions in insect-microbial symbioses: Aphids and their symbiotic bacteria Buchnera". Annual Review of Entomology. 43: 17–38. doi:10.1146/annurev.ento.43.1.17. PMID 15012383. ISSN 00664170.
{{cite journal}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ http://crocodilian.blogspot.com/2009/09/crocodile-myths-1-curious-trochilus.html