Aphids Pierce the Tissues of Plants with Their Tubular Mouthparts

question 38

Multiple Choice

Aphids pierce the tissues of plants with their tubular mouthparts and suck out the phloem juices. Because this food is mostly sugar water with a low concentration of protein, the aphids have to process large volumes of it to obtain sufficient protein. Most of the excess sugar and water passes right through the aphidsʹ digestive tracts and is defecated as ʺhoneydew,ʺ which is actively sought out and eaten by some ants. The ants will even ʺmilkʺ honeydew by stroking the aphids. In return, ants protect their aphids from predators, even going so far as taking them inside overnight. The relationship between the aphids and ants is called

• A) competition.
• B) predation.
• C) mutualism.
• D) parasitism.

---

Definitions:

System Requirements

The specified configuration of hardware and software needed for a software application or product to operate correctly.

Freeware

Software that is available for use at no cost, often distributed for personal or limited use without requiring payment or licensing fees.

Open Source

Pertaining to software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified.

Beta Version

A pre-release version of software that is given out to a large group of users to trial under real conditions and identify bugs before the final release.