In nature, in addition to relating to our environment, the fact of interacting between organisms of both the same species and a different species is a common phenomenon and necessary for the survival of organisms. Many different interactions are known, depending on how it occurs and who benefits and who loses, or if all participants obtain some benefit.
If you want to know more about it, in this article that we present to you from Green Ecologist we explain a specific example, what is forestry and examples. We encourage you to read it!
What is phoresis
First of all What does phoresis mean? The term foresis comes from the Greek phórēsis y means "transportation", hence its definition. The foresis, also known as foresia, is a type of commensalism relationship, that is, an association in which one species is benefited and the other is neither benefited nor harmed (+ / 0).
Thus, the definition of phoresis is the following: action in which an organism adheres or attaches itself to the exterior of the body of another, without any consequence other than transport. In this way, it is distinguished the phoron or pheric organism, term used to designate the organism that is transported, and host, used to refer to the carrier organism. The organism that is transported does not exert any negative consequence on the life of the organism that transports it, although there are cases in which it feeds on the transporting organism and gives rise to a part of a parasitic relationship and another part of a pheric one. This term arose in 1896, when it was observed how small arthropods use the largest ones to transport themselves from one place to another.
Examples of phoresis
There are numerous species that exert the phoresisAlthough the insect taxon is one of the best known groups with a large number and variety of organisms that use this relationship. Some examples of phoresis are:
- The mite Macrocheles muscaedomesticae attached to the fly Drosophila hydei.
- The wasp Trichogramma evanescens attached to the eye of the great cabbage or cabbage white butterfly, Pieris brassicae.
- Mites Poecilochirus austroasiaticus attached to the flying fly, Calliphora vicina.
In the aquatic environment, we also find various examples of phoresis, especially the numerous sedentary protozoa, algae and fungi that adhere to the bodies of arthropods, turtles, etc.
Types of commensalism
Beyond the phoresis, There are others examples of commensalism:
- There are the tenant relations, where one of the participating species lives on top of or within another species, yes, without causing any discomfort. This type of relationship is experienced by woodpeckers or squirrels, for example, that nest inside trees. The sea acorns that live on top of the mussel would also be another example. Here you can see more about What is tenantism and examples.
- There are metabolic relationships (also known as thanatocresia), where an organism takes advantage of the remains of another species to protect itself or to use them as tools, such as hermit crabs.
- Also exists chemical commensalism, that it is a very particular type of commensalism and that usually occurs by interaction between two bacteria. This relationship consists in the fact that one of the bacteria metabolizes a chemical compound that is not useful for the other bacterium, but that the metabolic product of the reactions carried out by the first bacterium is usable for the other bacterium.
In this other post you can learn more about What is commensalism and examples.
Difference between phoresis, commensalism, mutualism and parasitism
The difference between phoresis, commensalism, mutualism and parasitism It falls on who and how many of the participants in these relationships benefit and / or lose out.
- In a phoresis and commensalism relationship, one of the participating species benefits and the other is unaffected.
- The phoresis, unlike commensalism, none of the participants depends on this relationship to obtain food, since no physiological interaction or dependence intervenes in the phoresis.
- Regarding commensalism, on the other hand, the original meaning of this term referred to when animals fed on the remains of another's food, such as scavengers who chase game species to eat the leftovers they leave behind. .
- In mutualism relations, both species are benefited, both obtaining a benefit; This type of interaction is typical of organisms with compatible biological characteristics, for example, mycorrhizae: they consist of fungi that inhabit the roots of trees where there is an exchange of nutrients and organic matter in exchange for water.
- In parasitic relationships, one species benefits and another is harmed; an example of this type of interaction would be fleas, which inhabit the skin of animals obtaining a benefit but causing possible viruses in their host.
We recommend reading these other Green Ecologist articles to learn much more about these topics: Definition of mutualism and examples and Definition of parasitism and examples.
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Bibliography- Bogitsh, B. J., Carter, C. E., & Oeltmann, T. N. (2022). Human parasitology. Academic Press.
- Encyclopedia Britannica. (2022). Phoresy. Recovered from: https://www.britannica.com/science/phoresy
- White, P. S., Morran, L., & de Roode, J. (2022). Phoresy. Current Biology, 27(12), R578-R580.
- Quintero-Guitiérrez, E.J., & Romero-García, N.M. (2014). Foresis between coleopterans and mites: A real phenomenon or a controversial term. Biome, 20(2), 6-15.
