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Index of flora
Index of fauna
SYMBIOSIS: Living Together
 
Photo by Tan Bee Hong
Various symbionts on a flower crab
Symbiosis
In the competitive environment of the seashore, many plants and animals have established special relationships in order to enhance their chances of survival. There is an infinite variety of associations between different species of marine organisms and these vary in complexity.
The term symbiosis was coined by a biologist in 1879 to describe the inter-organismal relationships involving different species. It simply means "living together". We highlight some of the more prominent and interesting ones.
Examples of symbiosis on this site

Mutualism
Sea Anemone and Clownfish
Goby and Snapping Shrimp
Giant Clam

Commensalism
Crab and Anemone
Barnacles on Crab

Parasitism

Pea Crab and Bivalves
Parasitic Barnacles
Cymothoid Isopod and Fish
Bopyrid Isopod and Snapping Shrimp
Three types of symbioses are generally recognised:

Commensalism: neither partner profits at the expense of the other; the partners are host and commensal

Mutualism: both partners benefit from the association; the partners are mutuals

Parasitism: only one associate benefits, usually at the expense of the other although the death of one is rare; the members are host and parasite.
Introduction
Shore environment
 
From A Guide to Seashore Life by Dr Leo W H Tan and Peter K L Ng
Published by the Singapore Science Centre and sponsored by BP

@Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research and Singapore Science Centre