Q.What are the two groups of symbionts found in Lichens?
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Lichens are formed by two symbiont groups: the phycobiont (alga) and the mycobiont (fungus).
A lichen is not a single organism but a stable, symbiotic partnership between two very different organisms. The phycobiont is the algal partner; being chlorophyllous, it photosynthesises and supplies food to the partnership. The mycobiont is the fungal partner; it does not photosynthesise but instead provides physical structure and protection to the lichen body, and helps in the absorption of water and minerals from the surrounding environment. Because each partner supplies something the other lacks — food from the phycobiont, structure and protection from the mycobiont — this mutually beneficial relation …
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