Question

A type of bird is known to clean the teeth of alligators. The

relationship provides the bird with food, removing parasites and
other harmful organisms from the alligator's teeth. What type of
symbiotic relationship is described here?
a Mutualism
b Commensalism
C
Parasitism

Answer 1

The symbiotic relationship described here is mutualism, where both the bird and the alligator benefit from each other.

Step-by-step explanation:

The symbiotic relationship described here is mutualism.

In mutualism, both species involved in the relationship benefit from each other. In this case, the bird benefits by obtaining food (i.e. parasites) from the alligator's teeth, while the alligator benefits by having its teeth cleaned and rid of harmful organisms.

An example of mutualism similar to this relationship is the cleaning behavior of cleaner fish with large marine animals, such as cleaner wrasses with sharks or manta rays. The fish remove parasites from the larger animals while getting a meal.

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