In this scenario:
-
Who benefits? The jackal benefits from the relationship because it is able to feed on the remains of the prey that the tiger has killed. The tiger also benefits as it gets to eat its prey without competition from the jackal at the time of the kill.
-
Who is harmed? The prey (the animal killed by the tiger) is harmed as it has been killed for food.
-
Who is neutral? The tiger is neutral in terms of benefiting or being harmed by the jackal's presence; its primary goal is to eat the prey it has killed, while the jackal's scavenging does not directly affect the tiger’s success.
-
What relationship is this? This relationship is an example of commensalism, where one species (the jackal) benefits from the relationship while the other species (the tiger) is not noticeably affected. The kill itself represents predation, but the interaction between the jackal and the tiger post-kill illustrates commensalism. Overall, there is a complex interplay of relationships depicted here.
1 answer