The living world of our planet is extremely diverse and unique. It is difficult to come up with something more beautiful, perfect and amazing. Plants, animals, fungi, bacteria - they all adapt to existence in different ways, have their own distinctive features. Each organism strives to occupy its own ecological niche, to become part of the general circle of life. Therefore, he arranges himself as best he can, using all the means available for this.
Ecological groups of organisms by types of coexistence
Naturally, living on the same territory and often having a similar food source, all living beings are forced to interact with each other. In total, 9 types of coexistence of organisms can be distinguished:
- Neutralism - species do not depend on each other and are not connected by any interaction.
- Competition - interspecific and intraspecific. A he althy source of natural decline in species, the capture of territories by certain plant and animal species.
- Mutualism, or symbiosis is a type of relationship in which species are mutually beneficialcooperate with each other. In this case, the benefits are obvious to both parties. Example: mycorrhiza and tree roots, nitrogen-fixing bacteria and plants, etc.
- Interspecific mutual assistance. A type of relationship in which representatives of different species unite against one enemy, rid each other of parasites, etc.
- Commensalism and phoresia - the life of a larger host is a source of shelter or food for another, smaller species. Neither one nor the other receives harm, the benefit is one-sided.
- Amensalism - the life of one organism disrupts the normal existence of another. Example: a tree and grass underneath not getting enough light.
- Pasitism, when one species is the host, the other is a guest, causing great harm to the he alth and life of the organism. The class of parasites is quite extensive. Evolutionarily, such organisms have taken the path of regression. Among them there are representatives of all the kingdoms of wildlife.
- Predation - eating stronger species of weaker ones. The main value is the regulation of the number of species and the cleansing of sick and weak representatives.
- Allelopathy - chemical oppression of some plant species by others.
One of the most serious forms of interaction between organisms affecting humans and their he alth is parasitism. Let's take a closer look at it.
The parasite is who?
If you literally translate the term itself, it will mean "near food", "next to food". This already largely explains what kind of creatures they are. Parasites are organisms that live off the life of the host.settling inside it or outside and consuming the products of vital activity. They cause great harm, often fatal.
A parasite is one who lives at the expense of others in every sense and respect. There are such representatives that settle in humans, animals, plants. They cause a lot of diseases, lead to poisoning and intoxication, slowly kill the host's body from the inside. In appearance and internal structure, parasites are very diverse. Photos of many of them can be seen in the article. The representatives themselves may refer to the following organisms:
- Plants-parasites.
- Insect parasites.
- Protozoa.
- Animals.
- Mushrooms.
- Bacteria.
Obviously, there are such life forms among representatives of every kingdom. Let's deal with some of them, consider the lifestyle, structural features and harm caused to the owners.
Single-celled parasites
The smallest representatives of this ecological group of organisms. Often completely indistinguishable to the naked eye. They have structural features:
- the shape of the body can be constant, or it can change due to the lack of a shell and turgor;
- reproduce both sexually and asexually (depending on environmental conditions);
- contain special substances that do not allow them to be digested in the host's body;
- may be in a state of frozen life processes for a long time, a kind of sleep (cysts);
- breathe the entire surfacebody;
- move with the help of cilia or flagella, prolegs.
Types of parasitic protozoa
Single-celled parasite is a dangerous creature, transmitted from humans to animals and vice versa, causing a number of serious and dangerous diseases in its owner. Typical examples are:
- leishmania;
- trypanosomes;
- malarial plasmodium;
- dysentery amoeba;
- toxoplasma;
- babesia;
- gregarines, etc.
The parasites named above cause diseases of the same name in humans and animals, the consequences of which, even after treatment, remain terrible. Wounds on the skin that have a very unpleasant appearance, affected areas of external and internal organs, deterioration in the general physiological state, sleep disturbance, infertility and many others.
Leishmania
One of the most dangerous unicellular creatures for humans and many animals are Leishmania. Such a parasite is a microscopic organism that has a flagellum at one end of the body, and a blepharoplast at the other. The central part contains the nucleus. These creatures settle in the spleen, liver, bone marrow. They feed on the contents of cells, inhibiting their vital activity. They are able to multiply rapidly, after which they begin to harm the owner. Carried by insects such as flies.
The disease that this protozoan parasite causes is called leishmaniasis. Can occur in two forms:
- dry;
- weeping.
Manifested in purulent wounds on the skin, spreading very quickly over the entire surface of the body. Treatment is long, difficult, sometimes the terms reach up to a year. The main places of distribution and infection of the parasite are India, Italy, China, Iran.
Trypanosomes
The simplest parasite that causes severe disease. The most common is sleeping sickness. Trypanosomes exist in different forms. Sites of entry and damage in the body:
- lymph and blood;
- brain and spinal cord;
- serous fluids.
Tsetse fly, bedbugs. It is distributed mainly in Africa. Sleeping sickness symptoms:
- swellings on the skin, inside which parasites multiply and develop;
- dizziness;
- nausea;
- loss of coordination;
- neurological diseases;
- mental retardation;
- high fatigue;
- weakened immunity, etc.
Possible leakage in a more acute form, ending in death. Treatment is difficult, for several months and even years. It is best to carry out prevention and form immunity to this parasite by specially developed methods.
Insect parasites
There are also quite a lot of them, they sometimes cause very dangerous and serious diseases. The most common parasitic insects:
- lice are external parasites of the body of mammals (including humans),can cause diseases such as typhus;
- fleas - absorb the blood of warm-blooded creatures, cause plague;
- various flies - feed on garbage, organic and rotting residues, cause diseases such as plague, dysentery, typhoid, anthrax, tuberculosis in animals and humans, infect with parasitic worms;
- bed bugs - bite through the skin, feed on blood, cause infectious diseases, allergic;
- malarial mosquitoes are intermediate hosts that carry Plasmodium, which causes malaria;
- gadflies and gadflies - they drink the blood of animals, infecting them with various infectious diseases.
The parasites listed are examples of organisms from which you can easily isolate yourself and your loved ones if you maintain cleanliness, personal hygiene and keep pets in order.
Pincers
The most dangerous among insects is the encephalitic tick. In fact, it is called so for the disease, the development of which it provokes. In fact, this insect is called "taiga" and "dog tick". The animal itself is small, only up to 4 mm in length. However, its bite is extremely dangerous. Together with saliva, the encephalitis virus enters the human blood. Further development of the disease will depend on the immunity of the victim. If it is strong enough, the disease will not develop. If not, the consequences can be very severe. The most common consequences of encephalitis disease:
- fever;
- intoxication;
- head injurybrain;
- meningitis;
- neurological diseases;
- mental disorders;
- death.
Obviously, such parasites are extremely dangerous and unpleasant for humans. A photo of the tick can be seen below.
Plants-parasites
All plants according to the way of feeding are autotrophs. This is how it is considered. However, it turns out that some of them feed heterotrophically, being either parasites or predators. The most common forms that live off the owner and cause irreparable harm to him are:
- broomrape;
- dodder;
- cogwheel;
- mistletoe;
- large rattle;
- representatives of the Rafflesian.
Settling on cultivated plant species, parasites, examples of which are given above, cause severe diseases in them, often leading to death and significantly reducing crops and crops. Therefore, the fight against such organisms is carried out by man very actively.
Other forms settle not on cultivated plants, but on any other - trees, shrubs, herbs and so on. And in the same way, they cause various diseases in them, take away nutrients and water, and deprive them of life.
Mistletoe
Typical parasites on trees are mistletoe. The most common type is dyed mistletoe. It looks quite magnificent and beautiful, but the owner himself, from which the vital juices are sucked out, is very pale and dry. The mistletoe weaves its roots into the crown of the tree and thus gains access to all mineral compounds and water.
Outwardly, the mistletoe looks like an evergreen lush flowering bush, located on the branches or crown of the owner. Which trees are most commonly affected by this parasite?
- Fruit crops.
- Birches.
- Poplars.
- Maples.
- Pine trees.
- Willows.
- False acacias.
In the common people, it also has the names "bird glue" and "oakberries".
Parasitic animals
Among animals, the parasitic way of life is mainly worms: round, flat and others. They affect the lungs, heart, digestive organs, circulatory and lymphatic systems, liver. The worm adapts to life inside the body in such a way that no harm can be done to it by the host. The parasite has:
- a special shell that protects against digestion by gastric juice;
- hooks, trailers and other structures for holding and moving;
- simplified organ systems;
- the ability to reproduce quickly and lay thousands of eggs at a time.
The most common worms that infect humans are as follows: tapeworm, bovine and dwarf tapeworm, roundworm, trichinella, dirofilaria, loiasis, schistosome, whipworm and others.
It is often children who suffer from parasitic worms, because cleanliness is neglected when playing outside. Also, the most popular sources of infection are meat, fish and other protein products that have undergone insufficient heat treatment.
