Animal 1
Animal 2
Which animal
benefits and how
MINSKUISSil
OW 1 1 . Associations between species
FROM PROJECT REEF ED
Aim
© Great Barrier Root Marine Park Authority
Concepts
Association
• To observe some distinctive associations between some unlike organisms
Mutualism
which "live together".
Symbiosis
Commensalism
Adaptation
• Usual reef-walking and/or snorkelling gear
Skills
•
Underwater slate.
Observing
This activity requires several hours at various times during the fieldtrip.
You will need
Snorkelling
Attitudes
Perseverence
Appreciation of
natural
environments
What to do
1. On the reef, try to find examples of some of the interesting distinctive
associations between unlike organisms. Good ones to look out for are: Goby
and shrimp, needle coral and gall crab, turtleweed and crab, anemone and
clownfish, cleaner wrasse and large fish.
2. Go on a shallow snorkel over the sandy flat at high tide. Look for holes in the
sand with a sand-coloured goby standing guard. Hover nearby until the goby
no longer notices you and you may find there is also a shrimp living in the
hole and working industriously to clean it out. Observe them carefully and try
to work out what sort of relationship is involved who is helping whom?
3. On a reef walk, look for needle coral
(Seriatopora)
or the more club-like
branching coral
Pocillopora.
In each clump look for a slightly expanded fan-
shaped branch.
A tiny female gall crab lives inside coral gall. What sort of relationship do you
think this is?
4. Find some bright-green turtle weed. Gently run your fingers through the tuft.
If you find a small lump in there, very gently tease it out. You will probably
find it is a tiny, delicate, pale-green crab. What sort of relationship is this?
( Make sure the crab gets back safely into its own tuft of turtle weed).
5. On the reef walk near the reef crest or when snorkelling, look for the large
anemone with its attendant clownfish. How many clownfish are there? What
sizes are they? Which is the dominant one? Look for other anemones and
compare them.
6. When snorkelling, look for the small, slim, blue wrasse and see if you can find
its cleaning station. You may find large fish of several different species lined
up for cleaning just like cars at a car wash. What sort of relationship is this?
7. When snorkelling, if you are ever lucky enough to see a large manta ray look
for the remora or sucker fish attached to it. (You may even find remoras
following you around.) What sort of relationship is the one between a remora
and a manta ray?
8. Make a table of all the relationships you find on the reef, heading your table
as shown below.
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