Question:

Depending on soil nutrient availability, which one or more of the following interaction(s) can occur between soil mycorrhizal fungi and plants?

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Batesian mimicry = \textbf{bluff defense}: safe species looks dangerous. Müllerian mimicry = \textbf{shared signal} among genuinely harmful species.
Updated On: Aug 26, 2025
  • Parasitism
  • Predation
  • Mutualism
  • Commensalism
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The Correct Option is A, C, D

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Define Batesian mimicry.
A palatable/harmless species (the mimic) evolves to resemble an unpalatable/toxic model species. Predators that have learned (or evolved) to avoid the model also avoid the mimic \Rightarrow the mimic gains anti-predator protection.

Step 2: Identify the key benefit to the mimic.
Protection is achieved without paying the biochemical/physiological costs of producing toxins or other defenses. Hence option (C) captures the benefit exactly.

Step 3: Eliminate distractors.

(A) Wrong: the mimic \emph{does not} become more toxic; it only \emph{looks} like a toxic model.
(B) Irrelevant: “cooperation” is not central to mimicry.
(D) Not a standard or causal benefit; mimicry targets predation risk, not interspecific resource competition. Final Answer:
\[ \boxed{\text{(C) Increased protection without investing in toxicity}} \]
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