Remoras attach themselves to a shark’s body. They travel with the shark and feed on the left over food scraps from the shark’s meals.

Question

Who benefits?
Who is harmed?
Who is neutral?
What relationship is this?

Answer 1

In the scenario you've described:

• Who benefits? The remoras benefit from the relationship by getting food scraps from the shark’s meals and by gaining protection as they ride along with the shark.

• Who is harmed? The shark is generally neutral in this relationship; the presence of remoras typically does not harm the shark. However, if the remoras were to have a significant negative impact (which they usually do not), then the shark could be considered harmed. In most cases, the shark does not suffer any direct harm from the remoras.

• Who is neutral? The shark is generally considered neutral in this relationship since the remoras do not harm it and it doesn't derive any additional benefit from their presence.

• What relationship is this? This is an example of commensalism, a type of symbiotic relationship where one party (the remoras) benefits while the other party (the shark) is neither helped nor harmed.