Farscape Forever! by Glenn Yeffeth

Author:Glenn Yeffeth [Yeffeth, Glenn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: BenBella Books

COMMENSALISM PERHAPS …

There are creatures on Earth that fall into a particular symbiotic classification, called “commensalisms.” In a commensalistic relationship one species tends to benefit, while the other is largely unaffected. This seems to be the case with Pilot and Moya.

The term “commensalism” roughly means “joining together at the table,” and refers mainly to food-sharing associates: one creature lives off the uneaten food of another. On Earth, the shark and the previously mentioned remora is a perfect example. The small remora clings to the shark for sustenance via a sucker. The shark leaves the remora alone as it feasts off scraps the shark isn’t interested in. Apparently the remora is beneath the shark’s notice; it doesn’t harm the shark in any way. Another example is a type of barnacle that can be found on whales’ mouths eating to its heart’s content. And some barnacles have a commensalistic relationship with other species of barnacles. Pilot fish (an interesting name, eh?) are another example of such a relationship, though biologists don’t yet have all the details. The fish swim along with the sharks, perhaps because of an instinct to school or perhaps because they can go farther and faster while caught up in the “draft” of the sharks’ movement. In any case, it is clear they, like the remora, eat tidbits the sharks overlook.

Not all such commensalistic relationships are aquatic. Consider the tiny termite. There is a one-cell creature living in the termite, a microscopic protozoan, that turns wood cellulose into sugar, which is then digested by the termite. Harmless bacteria live in human intestines, as well as the intestines of other Earth creatures. They exist on food that passes through our bodies, perhaps even helping us by gobbling up unsafe particles. There are similar relationships in the plant world. Consider epiphytes, plants that grow on other plants. These hitchhikers do not steal food from their host; rather, they simply soak in the sunlight from a better position. Epiphytes include orchids, some members of the pineapple family and Spanish moss. And a case could be made that many species of birds share a commensalistic existence with the trees they build their nests in—the birds depending on the trees for shelter, and the trees not suffering for it.

Though you could say that Pilot has, in effect, nested in Moya, he is clearly more dependent on her than an orchid is on a tree. His circulation system is tied to the Leviathan; therefore his health is a mirror of hers. Further, once bonded, a Pilot receives his nutrients from his ship and would starve without her, though being bonded means the Pilot no longer has to worry about obtaining food on his own. His regeneration is also keyed to the nutrients he receives from his Leviathan: Moya’s Pilot was able to regrow limbs, and while it is possible that Pilots can regenerate on their homeworld, it is also likely that the shared nutrients from the Leviathan facilitate regeneration—or at least speed it considerably.

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