Lichen (Xanthoria parientina) growing on a rock. Lichen is a mutualistic (beneficial) association between a fungus and an alga. Lichen can survive in

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Lichen (Xanthoria parientina) growing on a rock. Lichen is a mutualistic (beneficial) association between a fungus and an alga. Lichen can survive in harsh environments. The fungus is thought to protect the alga that lives inside it, while the alga photosynthesizes a carbohydrate that the fungi uses as food.

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Photo credit: © JOHN HESELTINE/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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Keywords: algae, association, botany, epiphytes, epiphytic, fungi, fungus, lichen, lichens, mutualism, mutualistic, nature, parientina, plant, rock, symbiosis, symbiotic, xanthoria