Question
mutualism, commensalism or parasitism
Coyotes and Rabbits: Packs of coyotes travel through their territory in search of rabbit populations.
Coyotes and Rabbits: Packs of coyotes travel through their territory in search of rabbit populations.
Answers
GPT-4o mini
The interaction between coyotes and rabbits described in your scenario is a type of **predation**, which is not directly categorized as mutualism, commensalism, or parasitism. In this case, coyotes hunt rabbits for food, which falls under a predator-prey relationship.
To clarify:
- **Mutualism**: Both species benefit from the interaction (e.g., bees and flowers).
- **Commensalism**: One species benefits while the other is neither helped nor harmed (e.g., barnacles on whales).
- **Parasitism**: One species benefits at the expense of the other (e.g., ticks on mammals).
Since coyotes eat rabbits, this relationship is best characterized as predation rather than any of the three mentioned categories.
To clarify:
- **Mutualism**: Both species benefit from the interaction (e.g., bees and flowers).
- **Commensalism**: One species benefits while the other is neither helped nor harmed (e.g., barnacles on whales).
- **Parasitism**: One species benefits at the expense of the other (e.g., ticks on mammals).
Since coyotes eat rabbits, this relationship is best characterized as predation rather than any of the three mentioned categories.