Question

Which scenario describes a relationship of commensalism?
Responses

Oxpecker birds eat parasitic ticks off the backs of zebras.
Oxpecker birds eat parasitic ticks off the backs of zebras.

Birds feed off the insects that are stirred up from the grasses as cattle move through.
Birds feed off the insects that are stirred up from the grasses as cattle move through.

A tapeworm latches itself in the intestines of a rat, feeding off all the nutrients eaten by the rat

Answer 1

The scenario that describes a relationship of commensalism is:

**Birds feed off the insects that are stirred up from the grasses as cattle move through.**

In this case, the birds benefit from the insects that are disturbed by the cattle, while the cattle are not significantly affected by the presence of the birds. In commensalism, one organism benefits while the other is neither helped nor harmed.

The other scenarios represent different types of symbiotic relationships:
- The first scenario (oxpecker birds and zebras) is an example of mutualism, where both species benefit.
- The third scenario (tapeworm in the rat) is an example of parasitism, where one organism benefits at the expense of the other.