Description
Inter-Kingdom symbiosis is a prevalent adaptive strategy that has allowed organisms to colonize new environments, thrive in resource-poor conditions, and diversify. In particular, the benefit gained from two organisms coupling their metabolisms can fill in nutritional deficiencies for one or both partners, providing a competitive advantage in habitats where nutrients are limiting. These "nutritional mutualisms" have evolved across the diversity of life, and provide the foundation of ecosystems, such as coral reefs and forests. However, our understanding of the functioning and evolution of these relationships remains limited to a few well-studied species. In this talk, I will share some ongoing projects investigating nutritional mutualisms in three groups: marine invertebrates that host unicellular algae, vascular plants associated with mycorrhizal root fungi, and lichens. I include diverse taxa in my work with the long-term goal of improving our understanding of the ecology and evolution of nutritional mutualisms broadly, rather than in one group alone.| Period | 28 Feb 2025 |
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| Event title | Ecology and Biodiversity Seminar Series |
| Event type | Seminar |
| Location | Hong Kong, ChinaShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | Local |