Student Page
Name____________________________________________
Title: Best Buddies
Introduction: In nature, plants and animals develop complex relationships. Some are relationships you may know of are
producer/consumer/decomposer or predator/ prey. You may be less familiar with mutualism, commensalisms or parasitism. These
relationships are sometimes amazing to see because they remind us of human types of behavior. In this activity you will investigate
the plant and animal world as well as the human side of interactive relationships.
Procedures:
1. Turn to a partner and describe what you think it means to be a “buddy” to someone else.
2. Define the following terms that are used to define “buddies” in an ecosystem:
Producer---Makes it own food. Plants.
Consumer—Must eat to live. Plant and animal eaters. Herbivores, carnivores.
Decomposer—Breaks down dead things. Mushrooms, bacteria
Predator—Hunts and kills to eat.
Prey—Gets hunted and eaten
Mutualism—A relationship between 2 different species where BOTH organisms are HELPED.
Parasitism—A relationship between 2 different species where one is HELPED and the other is HARMED (but not usually killed).
Commensalism—A relationship between 2 different species where one is HELPED and the other is UNAFFECTED (not helped or
harmed.)
Look at the numbered pictures. Write down in the data table (next page) what role each organism plays and what kind of
relationship they have. Choose from producer/consumer, producer/consumer/decomposer, predator/prey, mutualism,
commensalisms or parasitism.
Data:
Picture number
Organisms
Type of relationship
Reason
Mushroom
Dead leaves lying on forest floor
Elephant
Grassland
Grasshopper
Leaves
Zebra
The zebra is killed and
eaten
Lioness
The lioness hunts and kills the
zebra.
Aphid
The aphid secrets a sticky, sweet
substance that the ants use for food.
Ant
The ant protects the aphid from other
insects that would like to eat it.
Cowbird
The cowbird follows the buffalo
and eats the insects that it
disturbs as it walks by
Buffalo
The buffalo grazes in the grasslands. When it walks it
disturbs insects. The insects fly up as the buffalo walks by.
Honey Guide
The honey guide loves bees wax
but is not strong enough to rip open
a bee hive. It finds the bee hive,
flutters to a badger, leads the
badger to the hive, and then waits
while the badger rips the hive open
Then it feasts on the wax while the
badger eats the honey.
Badger
Badgers love honey but are move slowly and have
difficulty finding hives. When they are led to the
hive, they use their strong legs and sharp claws to rip
open the hive and feast on the honey and bee larvae.
Their thick skin makes them impervious to bee stings.
Snail
Hermit Crab
Hermit crabs do not have hard shells.
They find abandoned snail shells and live
inside of them. The abandoned shell
gives them protection.
Tick
Deer
Ticks often live on deer. The tick gets a
warm, safe place to live and a food
supply because it sucks on the deer’s
blood. Though the tick does not kill the
deer, it does make the deer less
healthy.
Warbler
The warbler has to work hard, feeding and
taking care of the baby cuckoos. The baby
cuckoos are bigger than the baby warblers so
the cuckoos get more food and attention.
Cuckoo
The cuckoo bird lays its eggs in the
warbler’s nest and will often push the
warbler’s eggs out of the nest. Then the
cuckoo leaves and the warbler has to feed
and take care of the baby cuckoos.
Gazelle
Ostrich
Ostriches and gazelles mingle together
in the same area. When either the
ostrich or the gazelle spot a predator,
they warn each other so both can
escape.
Remora
By attaching itself to a leopard shark, a remora
is carried along on the shark's power. This
allows the remora to “travel” to different
areas without having to expend its own energy
to swim. The shark is completely unaffected by
the remora's presence.
Shark