Squamellaria plants grow special structures to host the ants they symbiotically rely on for nutrients. Distinct compartments help different ant colonies live peacefully side by side.
Articles on Symbiosis
Displaying 1 - 20 of 23 articles
Evolutionary biologist Rob Brooks talks to The Conversation Weekly about AI’s potential to influence our evolution.
Most of Australia’s plants rely on a hidden underground network of fungi for water and minerals. They could be in trouble – but we don’t have the data to know.
Symbiosis is so much part of life on Earth that it has shaped the evolution and structure of cells. It’s happening almost everywhere we look, including inside our gut.
Despite its 500-million-year history, the plant-fungi alliance holds mysteries that, once unravelled, could revolutionise agriculture and ecosystem management.
Reef corals grow vigorously in nutrient poor water – new research has found out why.
New findings suggest animal-mediated plant reproduction might have originated in the ocean.
Over hundreds of million years of evolution, ants have come up with some pretty smart solutions to problems of agriculture, navigation and architecture. People could learn a thing or two.
As early modern humans spread across the globe, their gut microbes genetically changed with them. Understanding the origins of gut microbes could improve understanding of their role in human health.
The new State of the Environment report shows Australia’s soil and the life it holds is in poor condition. We need to protect our underground biodiversity.
Fungi underpin life on Earth, but are far less well catalogued and understood than animals and plants. Three scientists call for including fungi in conservation strategies and environmental laws.
Goby fish and coral rely on each other to survive. But new research found gobies are declining under climate change, dealing a double blow to Australia’s reefs.
Researchers have just discovered a new species of bacteria that cranks out a deadly toxin. In a common arrangement in the marine environment, a slug and alga both use this toxin for their own defense.
Newly discovered billion-year-old fossilised fungi are more than twice as old as previous finds, and suggest that fungi may have been preparing Earth’s lands for plant life for millions of years.
The Impossible Burger contains an ingredient made by genetically modified yeast. So is this new veggie burger organic? Vegan? A GM product?
Parasites can tip the scales and take advantage of their hosts, stealing nutrients or resources. But can they control minds?
Star Wars: The Last Jedi leaves many questions about the saga in a galaxy far, far away unanswered. Fortunately, biology may offer a insights on the Force, midi-chlorians, clones, and Rey’s lineage.
Scientists have just discovered an unusual symbiotic relationship between crabs and living corals.
It seems that plants use social media, too.
Do you know your parasites from your gut commensals? Read this and you will.
Top contributors
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Lecturer in Mycorrhizal Ecology, Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University
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Professor of Biology, Wilfrid Laurier University
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Professor of Microbial Ecology, Royal Holloway, University of London
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Distinguished Professor of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University
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Emeritus Fellow in Plant Biochemistry, University of Westminster
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Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, Vin University
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PhD Candidate in kelp ecology, Southern Cross University
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Senior Research Associate, School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences, The University of Melbourne
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Curator of Mycology at New York State Museum, Bard College
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Professor and ARC Future Fellow, Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University
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Senior Lecturer, University of Wollongong
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Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University
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Professor in Plant-Soil Processes, University of Sheffield
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Director, Department of Microbiome Science, Max Planck Institute for Biology
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Independent Researcher, Indiana University