I have completely fallen in love with symbiosis. Animals that have evolved to work together to protect, feed and clean one another in a mutually beneficial relationship. A serious obstacle to Charles Darwin’s evolutionary theory on natural selection, we have gone on to discover that partnerships and associations have just as much, if not more importance than strength and size.
Upon reflection, we realise that wonderful examples of symbiosis are all around us, from bees pollinating flowers, to fleas on your family pet. However, some of the most spectacular symbiotic relationships can be found in the marine environment.
A well known animal that has a symbiotic association with certain fish species is the sea anemone, but a more radical user of these invertebrates is the boxing crab, who holds poisonous anemones as weapons leaving the crab looking like something that just finished cheerleading on a sportsground.
Rather than choosing a sea anemone, the Pearlfish has a somewhat lower standard of living with its preferred living quarters being that of a sea cucumber’s anus. And then there is the odd couple of the sea, the almost blind shrimp blessed with tireless OCD energy to clean alongside the vigilant and somewhat paranoid goby who is on constant watch for predators.
My personal favourite however is that of the larger animals who frequent the underwater cleaning stations. If you have kids, you would have seen an animated version of these in the movie Shark Tale. I find the sharks poise especially fascinating with their gaping mouths, lowered tail and idle swimming.
When we think of animals, we consider them to be engaged in a struggle of life and death. So it is always beautiful to witness the contrary, that many creatures in fact share a life of surprising intimacy and remarkable co-operation.
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