Symbiosis and Other Relationships

View Teach.Genetics for Classroom Materials
video
Meet the Soybean Looper

Take an up-close look at Chrysodeixis includens, a plant-eating caterpillar.

video
Meet the Parasitic Wasp

Learn about the tiny wasp Microplitis demolitor.

Living Together

Species often depend on one another to live. Symbiosis is a very close relationship between two (or more) kinds of organisms. It's Greek for living together. Some symbiotic relationships are so close that one species can’t survive apart from another.

video
Examples of Symbiosis

Explore these examples of symbiotic relationships to learn about plants, animals, and microbes living together.

explore
Interwoven Life Cycles

Dig into the details of a three-part relationship involving a wasp, a caterpillar, and a virus.


Credits

Credits

The Symbiosis and Other Relationships module is the product of a collaboration between the Genetic Science Learning Center (GSLC) at the University of Utah and Gaelen R. Burke at the University of Georgia.

The materials are part of the Broader Impacts under Dr. Burke’s award from the National Science Foundation (award no. 1748862).

Acknowledgements

Gaelen R. Burke, PhD
Associate Professor of Entomology
University of Georgia
Lab Website

Ben Luttinen
PhD student in Genetics
University of Georgia

A special thank you to Jena A. Johnson of Jena Johnson Photography who captured and shared many images and videos of Microplitis demolitor and Chrysodeixis includens that appear throughout the module. You can view more of her work at jenajohnson.zenfolio.com.

GSLC Staff

The following GSLC staff members contributed to this project:

Kagan Breitenbach
Jonathan Conger
Moriah Davies
Nathan Holland
Jonny Holmgren
Sheila Homburger
Max Kelly
Molly Malone
Julia Peterson
Mo Starr
Jen Taylor

Other Contributors

Kendra Hoffman, Voiceover: Meet the Soybean Looper and Meet the Parasitic Wasp


Funding

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation, Award no. 1748862.

The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funders.


APA format:

Genetic Science Learning Center. (2021, November 29) Symbiosis and Other Relationships. Retrieved April 26, 2024, from https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/symbiosis

CSE format:

Symbiosis and Other Relationships [Internet]. Salt Lake City (UT): Genetic Science Learning Center; 2021 [cited 2024 Apr 26] Available from https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/symbiosis

Chicago format:

Genetic Science Learning Center. "Symbiosis and Other Relationships." Learn.Genetics. November 29, 2021. Accessed April 26, 2024. https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/symbiosis.