Biology · Biological Classification · NEET
No, they are different, and NEET loves to swap them. Lichen = fungus + alga (or cyanobacteria). Mycorrhiza = fungus + ROOTS of a higher plant. Easy trick: lichen has an alga partner, mycorrhiza has a ROOT partner. The word 'rhiza' means root, so mycorrhiza must involve a root, not an alga.
Both benefit, so it is mutualism. The fungus gives the plant water and minerals (mainly phosphorus) from the soil. In return, the plant gives the fungus energy-rich carbohydrates (sugar) that it made by photosynthesis. Because both partners gain, it is never parasitism.
Fungus to plant: it absorbs phosphorus and other minerals from soil and passes them to the plant. It also gives extra benefits — resistance to root diseases, and tolerance to salt and drought. Plant to fungus: energy-yielding carbohydrates (sugar). Remember the NCERT line: fungus absorbs phosphorus, plant supplies carbohydrates.
Symbiotic. In NCERT, fungi have three nutrition types: saprophytes (eat dead matter), parasites (live on living hosts and harm them), and symbionts (live with a partner and both gain). Mycorrhiza is the SYMBIONT example with plant roots; lichen is the symbiont example with algae.
Yes. NCERT says many members of the genus Glomus form mycorrhiza. In this association the fungal partner absorbs phosphorus from soil and passes it to the plant. Glomus-based mycorrhiza is also used as a biofertiliser in organic farming.
Yes — three places. (1) Biological Classification (fungi as symbionts). (2) Plant Kingdom: Pinus (a gymnosperm) roots have mycorrhiza. (3) Ecology (Organisms and Populations): mycorrhiza is given as an example of mutualism. Pinus seeds even need mycorrhiza to germinate.
Match Column I with Column II: Column I (a) Saprophyte (b) Parasite (c) Lichens (d) Mycorrhiza Column II (i) Symbiotic association of fungi with plant roots (ii) Decomposition of dead organic materials (iii) Living on living plants or animals (iv) Symbiotic association of algae and fungi
Symbiotic association between fungi and algae are called ________.
Try the real previous-year questions from this chapter — each with the answer and a full solution.
Mycorrhiza is the symbiotic (mutualistic) association between a fungus and the roots of a higher plant, where the fungus supplies minerals and the plant supplies sugar.
Myco means fungus and rhiza means root, so mycorrhiza literally means fungus-root.
Mainly phosphorus. The fungal partner absorbs phosphorus from the soil and passes it to the plant, and also improves water uptake.
Yes. Both partners benefit, so it is mutualism. NCERT lists mycorrhiza as an example of mutualism in the Organisms and Populations chapter.
Glomus. NCERT states that many members of the genus Glomus form mycorrhiza and act as biofertilisers.
Pinus. Its roots have fungal association in the form of mycorrhiza, and Pinus seeds need this association to germinate.
