Question

Which of the following most accurately describes how mutualism might affect organism populations?

Mutualism provides neither species a benefit but may help species increase their population.

Mutualism provides a benefit for both species, allowing both to thrive and potentially increase their population.

Mutualism provides a benefit for one species and will help that species increase its population, but will not affect the other species.

Mutualism provides a benefit for both species, but does not affect the overall population of either species.

Answer 1

Mutualism provides a benefit for both species, allowing both to thrive and potentially increase their population.

Explanation: Mutualism is an interaction where both partners gain fitness benefits (e.g., increased survival or reproduction), which can raise population sizes or growth rates. The other choices are wrong because mutualism by definition benefits both partners (not neither or only one), and those benefits often—though not always—translate into population-level effects.