The lichen partnership
A lichen may resemble
a single plant like an organism, but it is really a colony of large embedded in a matrix formed by the filaments of a fungus good examples of symbiosis this the partnership between algae and fungi benefits from the combination of two different
methods of getting food for energy the algae in lichens make for energy the
algae in lichens make food through photosynthesis while the fungus absorbs food
and water from their environs.
With both methods available to it a lichen can survive in
challenging habits such as rocks or snow
There are at least 15000 varieties of lichens they provide a
major food source for reindeer and caribou
and dietary supplementary and in dyes
Lichens called British soldiers and pixie cups survive in
bleak settings because of a botanical partnership between algae and fungi.
The fungus is a member of the kingdom fungi a grouping of some
80000 organisms that range from single-celled yeasts to mushrooms and molds to
large slabs of bracket fungus growing up the sides of trees many fungi live
freely in soil or water and many more engage in parasitic or symbiotic
relationship with plants and animals most species are composed of strands of
cells called hyphae that combine to form a fungal body or mass known as a
mycelium
THE LICHEN PARTNERSHIP
Reviewed by Blog Universe
on
March 19, 2019
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