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The Importance Of Mutualism Between Animal And Animal Species

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It is a kind of positive interspecific interaction in which members of two different species favor the growth and survival of each other and their association is obligatory.
Species A = (+)
Species B = (+)
In this interaction, the members have widely different requirements and so interdependent that they cannot survive separately. It is an extreme type of symbiosis in which symbionts have permanent and obligatory close contacts.

1.Mutualism between animal and animal species

Cleveland (1926) reported the presence of a multi flagellate protozoan - Trichonympha Campanula as a symbiont in the intestine of white ant - termite.

The ant provides food and shelter to the protozoan which in turn secretes cellulase enzymes to digest the cellulose of wood ingested by the ant. Cellulose is hydrolyzed to sugars which are used by both the partners.

When the gut lining of Termite is ready for molting, Trichonympha undergoes encystment and are passed out with molting.

To ensure infection, the ant eats its molt. Newly hatched termites lick the anus of the older termites to ingest the symbiont.

About 11 families and 40 genera of flagellates have been reported from the intestine of termites.

Ant-aphid mutualism

Some kinds of ants pick up aphids or the aphids eggs from the surface of green plants and shelter them inside their own nest. The ants use the digestive wastes of the aphids as their food while aphids in return get nourishment from the rootlets of the plants ramifying through

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