Description
With antibiotic resistance rising, researchers are looking for ways to reduce use of these drugs. Some cattle once fed antibiotic-laced food now get feed that includes helpful bacteria that can live in the animal’s gut. The idea is that if a large population of beneficial bacteria is in place, then harmful bacteria with the same resource needs are less likely to thrive. Explain why this idea makes sense in terms of species interactions and provide an example with your response.
Explanation & Answer
If a large population of helpful bacteria is in a place where a smaller population of harmful bacteria lives the species have several options for interaction:
- No interaction (neutralism): this means that there is no effect of one species on the other (very unlikely in this case)
- Positive interaction (commensalism or mutualism): one species helps the other to survive where either one or both benefits (think of an anemone and clownfish)
- Negative interaction (competition, ammensalism, or antagonism/predation): harm is caused to one species by another