The “OTHER” relationships

Symbiosis

I CAN…

• Analyze the relationships between organisms and determine whether the organism is harmed, not affected, or benefits.

Reflect-prior knowledge

• How can organisms interact with each other?• Jot down your thoughts on your notes.

Good relationships vs. bad relationships

• Are these relationships good or bad?

Symbiosis

http://www.brainpop.com/science/ecologyandbehavior/symbiosis/preview.weml#

Symbiosis

3 types of symbiosis

• Commensalism• Parasitism• Mutualism• One organism benefits in ALL of these…..but the other organism

Examples of commensalism….

Commensalism-Sea anemone and clown fish

• In an ocean ecosystem, a sea anemone is a gentle creature with tube-like tentacles that are filled with a mild poison to trap its prey. A clown fish can swim through these tentacles, immune to its poisonous trap. Therefore, the fish can swim through these tentacles and be safe from other predators, while the anemone is not helped or hurt in any way.

• Clown fish gets a safe place to swim • Sea anemone gets NOTHING…

Commensalism-Barnacles and whales…

• Barnacles are small crustaceans who do not move on their own during much of their adult life. They attach themselves to much larger organisms, such as the whales, to be transported to new food sources. This does not hurt or help the whale in any way.

• The barnacle receives a temporary home and is transported to new food.

• The whale is not affected.

Caribou and the Arctic Fox….

• Caribou migrate in herds throughout the tundra, passing through and cleaning snow from the ground as they travel. The arctic fox follows the caribou throughout its journey in order to hunt the smaller animals that become exposed by the caribou.

• Who benefits????• Who is not affected????

Stop and jot

• What is commensalism?

Examples of parasitism….

Parasitism

• The puppy and the roundworm is an example of parasitism. A roundworm attaches itself inside the intestine of the puppy to feed on the nutrients in the puppy’s blood.

• The puppy is hurt by the parasite and loses blood.

• The roundworm benefits by receiving food.

Fungus and the tree

• An example of parasitism is when the fungus grows on trees. The fungus gets nutrients by breaking down the tree. As a result, the tree decays, gets weak, and becomes very vulnerable to the weather. Only one organism benefits, which is the fungus, while the tree is harmed.

• Who benefits?• Who is harmed?

Stop and jot

• On your notes describe “What is parasitism?”

Examples of mutualism…

Mutualism

• Lichen provide energy to the fungus, while the fungus gives the lichen a place to grow. This relationship benefits BOTH species.

• One gets energy ….the other gets a home.

Tick birds and the rhinoceros

• On a daily basis, the rhino is similar to a magnet, attracting itchy ticks to its body. Without any defense, the rhino is constantly subjected to them. The tick birds help the rhinos, by feeding off the ticks on their back. Both organisms benefit.

• How?

Stop and jot

• What is mutualism?

Now let’s practice…….

Partner activity• You will be given a card with the name of an organism on it.

Using the list, find your partner, and your paragraph in the matching color on the table. Partners, read your paragraph and identify your relationship.

• Pairs will come to the front with their organism cards, and give the name of their organism, then what they get from their relationship with their partner.

Trees and mistletoe Egyptian ploverbird and crocodile

Mammals and ticks Bees and flowersHuman intestines and bacteriaHuman intestines and tapewormLichen and Fungi/algae

Trees and mistletoe

Mistletoe is a plant that people hang above doorways at Christmas-time. Before it gets picked and hung inside it grows by living off of other plants. Mistletoe grows on woody plants, taking nutrients and moisture from them. It also “strangles” it—reducing the nutrients that the plant can take in. The woody plant or tree has to support itself as well as the mistletoe.

Egyptian plover bird and crocodile

You might think that if a bird landed in the mouth of a crocodile, the crocodile would eat it. Well, not the Egyptian Plover bird. Egyptian Plovers and crocodiles have a unique symbiotic relationship. Because crocodiles can’t use dental floss, they get food stuck in their teeth. All that food rots their teeth and probably causes them some pain. When a crocodile feels the need for a good tooth cleaning it will sit with its mouth wide open. The Egyptian Plover bird recognizes this invitation, and if one is nearby it will fly into the mouth of the crocodile, eat the food stuck in its teeth, and fly away.

Mammals and ticks• Ticks are pinhead-sized arachnids that form

parasitic relationships with birds, reptiles, animals, and sometimes humans. Ticks attach to their host’s skin and feed off its blood. In this way it gets both food and a home. Ticks can consume enough food to grow 200 to 600 times their original body weight. In this relationship, the tick gets a warm home and food. The tick may even give the host a disease, which could weaken or kill it.

Bees and flowers• You are all probably familiar with the idea that bees and

flowers have some kind of relationship. A bee goes from flower to flower gathering nectar. While it is doing this, some of the flower’s pollen ends up sticking to the bee’s hairy body and legs. When it goes to the next flower, some of that pollen rubs off of the bee and gets into the flower. The flower needs pollen to reproduce, but since flowers can’t move to get it themselves, the bees get it for them. Without bees, some flowers would have no way of getting the pollen they need to reproduce. Without flowers, bees wouldn’t get the nectar they need to eat.

Human intestine and bacteria• You might wonder how you can have your very own

symbiotic relationship going on right now and not know it. It’s because it happens in your intestine where you can’t see it. When you eat food, very little of it gets digested in your stomach. It travels through your intestine where bacteria further digest the partly digested food. The bacteria also produce vitamins. Your food gets digested, you get vitamins, and the bacteria get a meal. You have your very own partnership, without which, your body would not be as healthy!

Human intestine and tapewormTapeworms are long, flat parasites that live in the intestines of pigs, cows, and even humans. A tapeworm gets into its host by laying its eggs in the host’s food source. The host eats this food, and the eggs develop and grow into tapeworms, which attach themselves to the intestines of their host. Tapeworms feed off the food that the host eats, and sometimes a tapeworm has been known to live in a human for ten years without being detected! The tapeworm has a safe, warm home and a constant food source. In some rare cases, the tapeworm can make the host sick or even cause death.

Lichen and fungi / algae Lichen. The first time you see lichen, you may be

surprised that it is alive! It can be flat and not very obvious; it almost looks like a discoloration on a rock. Lichen is special because it can live in places where other organisms cannot. Lichen is a partnership or symbiotic relationship between two different species. Fungi and algae combine to create lichen, because together they can live in places where alone, as just algae or fungi, they could not survive.